The $75,000 Alcatraz Stakes has been added to the winter-spring meeting stakes schedule at Golden Gate Fields and the $100,000 Campanile Stakes has been moved from May 31 to June 8, it was announced March 9.
The Alcatraz is for 3-year-olds and will be run at one mile on the tuf May 11. Nominations for the race will close May 1. The addition of the Alcatraz means Golden Gate Fields will present a weekend stakes double-header May 10-11, with the $50,000 Golden Poppy on Saturday and the Alcatraz on Sunday.
The Golden Poppy is a 1 1/16-mile turf race for fillies and mares, and nominations for the race also close May 1.
"We are happy to return the Alcatraz to the stakes schedule after a one-year absence," said David Jerkens, Golden Gate Fields racing secretary. "It is important to run the race as it is a listed stakes."
The Alcatraz was last run at Golden Gate Fields on May 12, 2012, when Stoney Fleece nailed Chips All In on the wire for a nose victory. The 2012 renewal was run at 1 1/16 miles.
The Campanile, a one-mile turf race for 3-year-old fillies bred in California, will now be run the same day as the $100,000 Silky Sullivan Stakes, a one-mile turf race for 3-year-olds bred in California. Both races are Golden State Series Stakes.
"By moving the Campanile to June 8, we create a day where California-breds are showcased in two stakes," said Jerkens. "We are also going to try to card a couple of allowance races for California-breds that day. As California Chrome proved with his dominating victory in the San Felipe Stakes at Santa Anita (Saturday), California-breds deserve to be spotlighted."
