Ten Things You Should Know: Beverly D Stakes
By Kevin Martin, Hello Race Fans Contributing Editor
Originally published on August 11, 2011
1) The Beverly D is a Grade 1 turf race for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up held at Arlington Park outside of Chicago, Illinois. This year’s edition is part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge series, the winner will qualify for the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf in November.
2) The race is part of Arlington’s International Festival of Racing, a series of turf races that is among the richest in the country.
3) The race was run for the first time in 1987 and, until the founding of the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf, had the largest purse for a filly and mare turf race. The race was not run in 1988 and, like the Arlington Million, was not run in 1998 and 1999 when Arlington Park was closed.
4) The race is one of the few named for a woman in the world. It is named for Beverly D. Duchossois, whose husband, Richard, has served as the chairman of Arlington Park since 1983.
5) In 2010, Eclair de Lune, owned by Richard Duchossois, won the Beverly D. It was the first time he had entered a horse in the race named for his wife who died in 1980.
6) In 1990, Reluctant Guest broke the track record for 1 3/16 miles at Arlington Park in winning the Beverly D. The record was set by the great Round Table in 1959.
7) Six Beverly D winners have gone on to be voted the Eclipse Award for turf female: Flawlessly (1993), Hatoof (1994), Possibly Perfect (1995), Golden Apples (2002), Stacelita (2011) and Dank (2013).
8) In 1993, Flawlessly, the daughter of Triple Crown Winner Affirmed, scored a win in the Beverly D during an Eclipse Award winning campaign. She was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 2004 and has a race at Hollywood Park named in her honor.
9) From 2001 to 2016 only one winner of the Beverly D was bred in the United States (Dynaforce 2009). Winners of the race have been bred in France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, and South Africa. The last foreign-bred winner was Dacita (2017), who was bred in Chlie.
10) Christophe Clement owns the most wins as a trainer in the Beverly D. He won it in 2001 (England’s Legend), 2007 (Royal Highness), and 2008 (Mauralakana).
