Oaklawn Park Picks, Entries and Results

Oaklawn Park Track Details

Address: 2705 Central Ave, Hot Springs, AR 71901

Website: www.oaklawn.com

Meeting:  Oaklawn’s dirt-only meet begins in late January and runs through the first Saturday in May, Kentucky Derby Day. The high-quality racing is bolstered by many lucrative stakes races, including a few million dollar events: the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby, the Grade 1 Apple Blossom, the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap and the Grade 2 Rebel. Chief among those races is the Arkansas Derby, which is the track’s local prep for the Kentucky Derby and the centerpiece of the meet. Other prominent races include the Grade 3, $700,000 Southwest, the Grade 3, $600,000 Fantasy, the Grade 3, $500,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap and the Grade 3, $500,000 Razorback Handicap.

History:  One of the most popular tracks in America and a hub for winter racing, Oaklawn Park opened in Hot Springs, Arkansas on February 24, 1905. The fledgling track struggled early on due to the political climate in Arkansas in the early 20th century, but found its footing in 1929, when a bill was passed in the state to allow horse racing and parimutuel betting. The track grew steadily in the ensuing decades. The first Arkansas Derby was run in 1936 with a purse of $5,000, and over time it became one of the major prep races for the Kentucky Derby. The Fantasy Stakes was first run in 1973, and it too would become a major prep race for the Derby’s counterpart, the Kentucky Oaks. By the mid-1980’s the track had hit a high-water mark and attendance and handle began to dip, but it quickly recaptured its former glory in the 90’s and remains a premier destination for racing in winter. In 2015, American Pharoah won the Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn before going on to win the Triple Crown. A life-sized bronze sculpture of American Pharoah and jockey Victor Espinoza now resides at the entrance to the grandstand.

Facilities:  Oakawn also hosts a casino on the property, which makes it the largest gambling facility in the state of Arkansas. The casino features slot machines (though the state requires that these be “electronic games of skill”), poker tables, and an Instant Racing complex. In 2018, Oaklawn announced plans for the construction of a new high-rise hotel and events center on the site, to be completed by 2020. The original clubhouse was designed by Chicago architect Zachary Taylor Davis in 1904, who would later design Chicago's Old Comiskey Park and Wrigley Field. Oaklawn’s dirt track measures one-mile in circumference, and unlike most tracks in the country, two different finish lines are used.