What qualifies a race to be a Grade 1 vs. Grade 2 or 3?
In the simplest terms, a Grade 1 race is a race for Grade 1 horses. The goal of assigning a grade is to make the race attractive to horses of similar quality. Owners and trainers want their horses to run where they can win the largest purses and earn the prestige of the highest stakes grades. Assigning grades helps owners and trainers pick the best possible races for their horses. The best horses usually race fewer than a dozen times per year and have careers that only last a couple of years, at most. It makes little sense for a Grade 1 horse to run in a Grade 3 race – while he should win easily, there’s more money and prestige to be earned in a Grade 1 race. Likewise, it makes little sense to run a Grade 3 horse in a Grade 1 race – there’s little chance of winning and an opportunity has been missed to win at the appropriate level. If a race with a lower grade can consistantly attract better horses than its grade level, usually by offering a larger purse, it will eventually earn a high
