TheMan o' War Stakes is aGrade II Americanthoroughbred horse race for horses aged four-years-old and older. It is run over a distance of one and three-eighth miles onturf and is scheduled annually for early May atBelmont Park inElmont, New York. The current purse is $400,000.

The event is named in honor ofU.S. Racing Hall of Fame ChampionMan o' War who was selected as No. 1 in theBlood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century.^[1]

The inaugural running of the event was on 24 October 1959 at the newly reopenedAqueduct Racetrack as theMan o' War Handicap over a distance of1+1⁄2 miles.^[2] The event attracted 23 entrants thus enabling NYRA to run the event as two split divisions with a record total purse of $225,100.^[3] The event attracted some of the finest long distance turf horses including British bred Tudor Era who was first past the post in the 1958Washington D.C. International at Laurel but was disqualified. Tudor Era would win the Second Division of the event as the favorite defeating Marlow Road by 3 lengths with Anisado in third place in a time of 2:41 flat.^[3] In 1960 the event was held at Belmont Park^[4] with the 37-1 Harmonizing defeatingBald Eagle and the 1959U.S. Horse of the YearSword Dancer.Bald Eagle would go on and win theWashington D.C. International and would be crowdedU.S. Champion Older Male Horse.

The event was moved back Aqueduct in 1961 at a longer distance of one and five-eighths miles with handicap conditions.^[5] NYRA by scheduling the event in October established New York as a logical and natural place for international and top US turf runners to prepare for theWashington D.C. International which was considered as the forerunner to theBreeders' Cup Turf and the championship long distance turf race. The 1962 renewal of the event as theMan o' War Stakes at Belmont Park was run withWeight for Age conditions. The winner, 20-1 longshotBeau Purple who set a track record of 2:28.60 for the1+1⁄2 miles in defeating a group of highly talented entrants, including 1961U.S. Horse of the Year and last winner of theJockey Club Gold CupKelso in second, former English based The Axe II in third, who would win this event the following year, Wise Ship in fourth, who won this event in 1961 and the1961 Kentucky Derby winnerCarry Back who finished fifth. Other starters included 1962Belmont Stakes winnerJaipur,T.V. Lark, Honey Dear, Guadalcanal and the 1960 winner of this event Harmonizing.^[6]

The event was held at Aqueduct from 1963 to 1967 while Belmont Park was under reconstruction.^[7] On return to Belmont Park in 1968 a host of champions would win the event. In 1969 theSouth African bred Champion Three-year-oldHawaii would win the event and would be crownedU.S. Champion Turf Horse. The following year, in 1970Fort Marcy would finally win the event after four tries including twice second (1967, 1968) and third to Hawaii in 1969. In 1970 Fort Marcy also won the Washington D.C. International for the second time and was crownedU.S. Horse of the Year. The 1971 winnerRun the Gantlet was also victorious in the Washington D.C. International and was crownedU.S. Champion Turf Horse. In 1972 the event was won by the six year old mareTypecast and she would be crownedU.S. Champion Older Female Horse.

In 1973 the first year the classification system was enacted, the event was set withGrade I status.^[8] The 1973 winner was theU.S. Triple Crown Champion,Secretariat. Secretariat was to have his first start on the grass and nine days after he was beaten in the Grade 1Woodward Stakes over1+1⁄2 miles. Nonetheless, Secretariat would win the event by 5 lengths as the 1/2 odds-on favorite setting a new track record of 2:244⁄5.^[9] Secretariat would be awardedU.S. Champion Turf Horse andU.S. Horse of the Year.

In 1974 the event was won by theFrench based mareDahlia who had earlier campaigned in England and France.^[10] Dahlia would win theCanadian International Stakes in her next start and would be crownedU.S. Champion Turf Horse.

In 1977 NYRA introduced theTurf Classic over the same distance of1+1⁄2 miles that was held in November.^[11] The scheduling of the Man o' War Stakes would be affected in that NYRA would try and space out the time between the dates that the events were held in the fall. In 1978 the distance of the event was decreased by one furlong to the current distance of1+3⁄8 miles.^[8] The event that year was won by the French bredWaya and would win theTurf Classic two weeks later. In 1979Bowl Game was able complete the treble in capturing the Man o' War Stakes,Turf Classic andWashington D.C. International. Such a feat earnedBowl GameU.S. Champion Turf Horse honors for 1979.

With the introduction of theBreeders' Cup in 1984 with theBreeders' Cup Turf the Man o' War Stakes become a major preparatory event in the early fall.

Irish bredTheatrical won the event in October 1987 at Aqueduct after also winning theTurf Classic which was scheduled earlier in September and then went on to also win theBreeders' Cup Turf atHollywood Park. Theatrical was crownedU.S. Champion Turf Horse for 1987. Other fine horses to have completed the Man o' War-Turf Classic double include 1988 winnerSunshine Forever, 1989 winnerYankee Affair and 1991 winner Solar Splendor who set a new stakes record of 2:12:01 as a 24-1 longshot on the inner turf track.^[12] Solar Splendor would repeat winning the event the following year on the main turf track this time setting a new course record of 2:12.45.^[13] In 1999 Val's Prince also completed the NYRA Turf double but failed to spark in theBreeders' Cup Turf finishing eleventh.

The 2005 winnerBetter Talk Now won the event setting a new stakes record in 2:11.65.^[5] Better Talk Now had won theBreeders' Cup Turf in 2004 atLone Star Park.

In 2008 the Man o' War was moved from Belmont's fall schedule into its summer schedule, replacing theBowling Green Handicap in an attempt to more fairly represent turf competition. Also that year the conditions of the event were changed fromWeight for Age to stakes with allowances.^[14]

In 2014 the event was scheduled in May and the conditions of the event were changed so that three-year-olds would not be allowed to enter.^[15]

In 2017 the event was won by the five-year-old Irish bred mare Zhukova who started as the 9/10 odds-on favorite and set a new stakes winning margin by 6 lengths over Taghleeb in a small field of five starters in a time of 2:25.31 on a yielding track in rainy weather.^[16] Zhukova was the fifth mare to have had won the event after Dotted Line (1959),Typecast (1973),Dahlia (1974) andWaya (1978).

In 2020 due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United States, NYRA did not schedule the event in their updated and shortened spring-summer meeting.^[17]

In 2024 the event was downgraded by theThoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to Grade II status.^[18] Also the event was moved to Aqueduct Racetrack due to infield tunnel and redevelopment work at Belmont Park.^[19]

Time record:

• 1+3⁄8 miles – 2:11.65 –Better Talk Now (2005)
• 1+1⁄2 miles – 2:24.80 –Secretariat (1973)
• 1+5⁄8 miles – 2:42.60 –Hill Rise (1965)

Margins:

• 6 lengths – Zhukova(IRE) (2017)

Most wins:

• 2 –Majesty's Prince (1983, 1984)
• 2 – Solar Splendor (1991, 1992)
• 2 –Gio Ponti (2009, 2010)
• 2 – With Anticipation (2001, 2002)

Most wins by an owner:

• 3 –Rokeby Stable (1970, 1971, 1986)
• 3 –Phipps Stable (2012, 2013, 2014)
• 3 –Godolphin (1998, 2000, 2024)

Most wins by ajockey:

• 5 –Jorge Velásquez (1968, 1969, 1970, 1975, 1979)

Most wins by atrainer:

• 4 –MacKenzie Miller (1966, 1969, 1975, 1986)

• List of American and Canadian Graded races

• Graded stakes races in the United States
• Open middle distance horse races
• Grade 2 stakes races in the United States
• Horse races in the United States
• Belmont Park
• Horse races in New York (state)
• Turf races in the United States
• Recurring sporting events established in 1959
• 1959 establishments in New York (state)

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata