What Is a Grade 1 Race? Group vs Grade, Explained with Belmont and Newmarket

What is a Grade 1 race?

A Grade 1 race is the highest level of stakes race in North American Thoroughbred racing: the races where the best horses meet on the fairest terms. In Europe and most other racing countries, the same top tier is called a Group 1, so Group 1 vs Grade 1 is mostly a difference of vocabulary, not quality.

This week shows both labels side by side. Today, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, Newmarket in England runs two Group 1s for 2-year-olds, one for fillies and one for colts. On Thursday, Oct. 1, Belmont Park in New York runs a Grade 1 on turf.

The Belmont race was meant for today too, but NYRA canceled live racing on Saturday and Sunday because a nor'easter was forecast to bring very high winds and heavy rain to Long Island, and moved the weekend's graded stakes to Oct. 1. Results were not in when this was written, so this guide talks about the races as scheduled. The lasting part is the glossary: you can use it on any big race day, from the Arc to the Breeders' Cup.

This week's big races at Belmont and Newmarket

Belmont Park: the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (now Oct. 1)

The Joe Hirsch Turf Classic 2026 is a Grade 1, $500,000 race over 1½ miles on the Widener turf course, for 3-year-olds and up. Horse Racing Nation calls it the first top-level turf race on Belmont's newly rebuilt course.

Godolphin's El Cordobes, trained by Charlie Appleby, heads a seven-horse field that was redrawn for the new date. He won the Grade 1 Sword Dancer at Saratoga in 2025 and finished third in the Breeders' Cup Turf later that year, but this is his first start since February in Qatar.

He's one of three European shippers, alongside Pride of Arras (Ralph Beckett) and Fort George (Ed Walker). The home team includes 2024 winner Far Bridge (Miguel Clement) and Program Trading (Chad Brown).

Newmarket: the Cheveley Park and Middle Park Stakes (today)

Newmarket's Cambridgeshire Meeting reaches its Saturday card on the Rowley Mile. Two Group 1 sprints over 6 furlongs headline it:

• Cheveley Park Stakes 2026: for 2-year-old fillies, six declared runners.
• Middle Park Stakes: for 2-year-old colts, seven declared. The Jockey Club notes some leading contenders may go on to the next spring's 2,000 Guineas.
• Royal Lodge Stakes: a Group 2 over a mile for 2-year-olds.
• Cambridgeshire: a Heritage Handicap over 9 furlongs with 28 declared, and the first leg of the old Autumn Double.

Group 1 vs Grade 1: who decides?

Both systems try to answer the same question: which races consistently attract the best horses? They just use different committees and slightly different words.

North America: the Graded Stakes Committee

In the U.S., the American Graded Stakes Committee, run by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA), reviews stakes races every year. For 2026 it looked at 942 stakes with purses of at least $75,000 and gave graded status to 410 of them, plus Listed status to 211.

Grades move up and down. For 2026 the Ladies Turf Sprint at Kentucky Downs was raised to Grade 1, while two former Grade 1s were dropped to Grade 2.

Europe: ratings and the IFHA

In Britain and Europe, handicappers work out an average rating for the first four finishers of each race over a rolling three-year period. If a race keeps hitting the target figure, it keeps its Group level, and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) ratifies each race's standing.

Watch out for one twist: British and Irish jump racing uses Grade 1, 2 and 3, not Group. So in the UK, Grade means jumps and Group means the Flat.

The race-class ladder, top to bottom

Think of it as a ladder. The higher the rung, the better the horses and the bigger the prize.

1. Grade 1 / Group 1: championship level. Derbies, the Arc, Breeders' Cup races, this week's three headliners.
2. Grade 2 / Group 2: very high class, one step down. Newmarket's Royal Lodge is today's example.
3. Grade 3 / Group 3: the entry level of the elite, where many future stars earn their first big win.
4. Listed races: stakes just below the graded or Group tier. The BHA calls them the stepping-stone between handicaps and the Pattern.
5. Handicaps: the handicapper assigns each horse a weight so horses of different ability can compete.
6. Allowance, conditions, maiden and claiming races: the everyday races where most horses start, including maidens for horses that haven't won yet.

The top three rungs together are called Pattern races in Europe and graded stakes in North America. Placing in any of them, or in a Listed race, earns black type, explained below.

What is a handicap race?

A handicap race gives the better horses more weight to carry, so in theory the whole field could finish together. Each horse has a rating, and the higher the rating, the heavier the weight.

The BHA's own example: in a race with a top weight of 9 st 7 lb, a horse rated 80 carries 9-7, while a horse rated 70 carries 10 lb less. That's why big handicaps like the Cambridgeshire draw huge fields and are so hard to call.

Weight-for-age and set weights, explained

Top races aim for level terms, but level doesn't mean identical. Three tools shape what each horse carries.

• Weight-for-age: younger horses are still maturing, so they carry less weight than older horses in the same race. The allowance shrinks as the season goes on.
• Sex allowance: fillies and mares get a few pounds off when they race against colts and geldings.
• Set weights: when every runner is the same age and sex, they often carry the same weight. In today's Cheveley Park, every filly carries 9 st 2 lb (128 lb).

In the Joe Hirsch field as first entered, every runner was listed at 126 pounds, per BloodHorse. In British Pattern races, the BHA notes that horses that recently won at that level or higher usually carry a penalty, meaning extra weight. Group 1s are normally run without penalties, because they're meant to find the best horse.

Why a Grade 1 win matters

A Grade 1 is not just a trophy. It changes what a horse is worth, on and off the track.

Breeding value and black type

In a sales catalogue, horses that won or placed in stakes races have their names printed in bold, called black type. A Grade 1 or Group 1 win is the boldest line a pedigree can have.

For a colt, it can shape his future stud fee. For a filly, it lifts her value as a broodmare and the value of every foal she produces.

The road to the Breeders' Cup

The Joe Hirsch is a well-known stepping stone to the Breeders' Cup Turf: the 2025 winner, Rebel's Romance, went on to finish second in that race. Some prep races are Win and You're In races with a guaranteed spot, but for everyone else, graded-stakes results carry real weight when the Breeders' Cup has more entries than starting spots.

The same goes for 2-year-olds: a juvenile Group 1 winner often shapes plans for the next year's classics. For the full calendar, see our Breeders' Cup 2026 guide.

Race-day glossary: what to look for on any card

Keep this list handy for any big race day. For more horse terms, try our glossary.

• G1 / Gr1 / Grade 1: top-level race. G1 can mean Group 1 or Grade 1 depending on country.
• Stakes race: a race where owners pay entry fees. Most top races are stakes.
• Listed (L): just below Group 3 or Grade 3.
• Black type: bold type in a catalogue for stakes winners and placed horses.
• Handicap: weights set by rating to even out the field.
• Weight-for-age: younger horses carry less than older ones.
• Furlong (f): one-eighth of a mile, about 201 meters.
• Going / track condition: how firm or soft the ground is. Newmarket's going was declared good, good to firm in places.
• Juvenile: a 2-year-old racehorse.
• Filly / colt / mare / gelding: young female, young male, older female, and a castrated male.

What to watch next

Use this week's races to test your new vocabulary. Here's a simple checklist for any race day:

• Check the level on the racecard: G1, G2, G3, Listed or handicap.
• Read the conditions: age, sex and distance tell you who is allowed in.
• Look at the weights: equal weights mean a championship test, spread weights mean a handicap.
• Follow the winners to their next big target.

Next up, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is Europe's richest Group 1 on turf, then the Breeders' Cup at Keeneland brings the world's Grade 1 horses together.

Many of this week's runners will eventually retire into second careers. Our OTTB guide explains how that works, and our racehorse naming guide explains where names like El Cordobes come from.