A year ago I wrote an article asking, when are the Breeders’ Cup synthetic championships coming? Well, while we are still waiting on the Breeders’ Cup, Turfway Park and parent company Churchill Downs Inc. are the ones picking up the ball and running with it.

We already know that synthetic is the safest surface to race on, and with greater emphasis being placed on synthetic tracks every year, it only makes sense to create new big days on synthetic.

Turfway Park is doing just that. Earlier this year, Turfway Park established the $1 million synthetic championships day, scheduled for this Saturday. The night is headlined by the $250,000 Prairie Bayou sharing the spotlight with the $250,000 Holiday Cheer, the $250,000 Holiday Inaugural and the $250,000 My Charmer.

“I think this event can continue to build year after year and take on a life of its own,” said Gary Palmisano, vice president of racing for CDI. “I could see a scenario down the road where there are win-and-you’re-in type races at other tracks that point towards this race card. The sky is the limit for this event, we hope.”

All four stakes are ungraded this year, but Palmisano could see that changing. “We expect to see more races on synthetic become graded,” he said.

Great time of year for racing and sports calendars

For racing, it makes sense for synthetic specialists to have a target at the end of the year, Palmisano noted. But the sports calendar is also an ideal fit.

“We’re really excited about this particular day on the calendar,” he said. “Looking at the sports landscape, there is little to no football that Saturday,” providing an opportunity to reach horseplayers undistracted by other sports.

Only 3 U.S. synthetic races are graded, 24 at Woodbine

In 2024, only three U.S. races run on synthetic are graded: The Grade 2, $700,000 Jeff Ruby and $300,000 Kentucky Cup Classic (G3) run in late March and the $300,000 Presque Isle Downs Masters (G3) in late September.

Golden Gate had run the Golden Gate Handicap (G3) in November 2023 before closing. Gulfstream Park does not have any graded stakes on synthetic.

North of the border, Woodbine held 24 graded races this year, including four Grade 2 races, the Eclipse Stakes, Seagram Cup, Autumn Stakes and Kennedy Road, along with 20 Grade 3 events. The Kings Plate, worth CA$1 million, is not eligible for grading as a restricted event.

What are the highest purse races run on synthetic in North America?

Here are the 12 highest purse events on synthetic in North America in 2024 year-to-date.

Saturday night card

The four stakes anchor a tremendous night of racing filled with Turfway’s signature large fields. An average of 13.6 horses are entered for each of the nine races. With a maximum field of 12, three of the stakes are oversubscribed and one has a field of 11.