| Restricted State-bred Stakes race | |
| Location | Pimlico Race Course, Baltimore, Maryland, United States OR Laurel Park Racecourse, Laurel, Maryland, United States |
|---|---|
| Inaugurated | 1973 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred – Flat racing |
| Website | www |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 1 mile (8 furlongs) |
| Surface | Dirt |
| Track | left-handed |
| Qualification | Three-year-olds & up; fillies and mares |
| Purse | $125,000 |
Geisha Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in April since 1973 primarily at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore or at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel. To be eligible for the Geisha Handicap, a horse must be bred in Maryland. Due to that restriction the race is classified as a non-graded or "listed" stakes race and is not eligible for grading by the American Graded Stakes Committee.[1]
In 2012 the Geisha Stakes is run at one mile. The race was run at 1+1⁄16 miles for its first 30 years in existence from 1973–2003. The race was run on the turf one year in 1988.
In its 39th running in 2010, the race was named in honor of Alfred G. Vanderbilt's Geisha, a Maryland-bred daughter of Discovery and bred by John P. Grier. She was foaled at the famed Sagamore Farm in Glyndon, Maryland in 1943. She was bred to Preakness Stakes winner Polynesian and produced Native Dancer in 1950, one of the greatest race horses and sires of the 20th century.