Summer Stakes (Canada)

The Summer Stakes is a Thoroughbred horse race run annually in mid-September at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Contested on turf over a distance of 1 mile (8 furlongs), it is open to two-year-old horses. It became a Grade II in 1999 but in 2006 was downgraded to a Grade III status. In 2012, it returned to Grade II status.^[1] In 2018, the Jockey Club of Canada moved it to Grade I status.^[2]

Part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge series, the winner of the Summer Stakes automatically qualifies for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf.^[3]

Inaugurated in 1953 at Fort Erie Racetrack as a sprint race on dirt, the Summer Stakes was moved to the turf in 1962. Since inception it has been run at various distances:

• 5 furlongs : 1953–1956 on dirt at Fort Erie Racetrack
• 5.5 furlongs : 1957–1960, 1961 on dirt at Fort Erie Racetrack
• 8 furlongs (1 mile) : 1962–1984 on turf at Fort Erie Racetrack, since 1985 on turf at Woodbine Racetrack

The race was run in two divisions in 1958, 1967, and 1969.