Beginning January 1, 2026, New York-bred overnight races for 2-year-olds on the NYRA circuit will offer purse amounts matching the race’s open-company counterpart (19% purse increase from 2023) – and beginning January 1, 2027, all New York-bred overnight races at NYRA will be run for purse money equal to their open-company counterparts. Accordingly, New York-bred foals beginning with the foal crop of 2024 will gain the benefits and financial rewards that will flow from purse parity.
At the 2024 summer meet at Saratoga Race Course, maiden races restricted to New York-bred 2-year-olds featured a purse of $90,000 compared to a purse of $100,000 offered for 2-year-olds competing in an open-company maiden event.
In 2024, NYRA ran 548 New York-bred races for total purses of $42,817,000 with the new program anticipated to increase New York-bred overnight purses by 15 percent compared to 2024 purse levels.
The programs will be offered starting in 2026 at both Saratoga Race Course and Aqueduct Racetrack as well as at the new Belmont Park, which will open in the fall of 2026.
New York-Bred Program Breeder Awards
The breeder’s awards rate schedule for New York-breds is as follows:
| New York-Sired | Award (Percent of Purse Money Earned) |
| First Place | 40% |
| Second Place | 20% |
| Third Place | 10% |
| Cap Per Award | $40,000 |
| Non New York-Sired | Award (Percent of Purse Money Earned) |
| First Place | 20% |
| Second Place | 10% |
| Third Place | 5% |
| Cap Per Award | $20,000 |
A breeder is the owner of the mare at the time the mare foals in New York State. There are two tiers of breeder’s awards for all races run in New York State: A New York-sired New York-bred is sired by a registered New York Stallion. A non-New York-sired New York-bred is sired by an out-of-state stallion or a non-registered New York stallion.
For questions about the New York breeding awards, contact [email protected].
How to Qualify your Foal as a NY-Bred
To qualify for registration as a New York-bred, the mare must foal in New York State and meet the domicile requirements specified by the New York Thoroughbred Breeding & Development Fund.
New York recognizes three categories of mares: resident mares, non-resident mares, and non-resident mares purchased at public auction for $50,000 or more.
New York State has recently adopted rules that expand the reach of the New York-bred awards and benefits by clarifying a pathway for non-resident mares to gain residency status. Learn more here.
For questions on the NY-bred program, contact [email protected].
NY State Thoroughbred Farm Directory