Spoken Fur won the first two legs of the 2003 "Triple Tiara."
Citing budgetary constraints, the New York Racing Association has cancelled the $2 million "Triple Tiara" bonus after one season.The moniker "Triple Tiara" had long been associated with the Acorn, Mother Goose, and Coaching Club American Oaks--Belmont's three grade I races for 3-year old fillies each spring. But last year, NYRA decided to offer a $2 million bonus to the series while replacing the Acorn with the Alabama at Saratoga. Spoken Fur won the Mother Goose and Coaching Club but could do no better than third with the bonus on the line in the Alabama.Despite the bonus, fields for the three races were largely unaffected, and Spoken Fur was mostly ignored by Eclipse voters, as was Alabama winner Island Fashion.All three Triple Tiara races will be run as regularly scheduled in 2004.
