What to know for Keeneland’s 2025 Spring Meet after severe weather postpones start
The annual Spring Meet at Keeneland is here. But you’ll have to wait a few extra days to see horse racing for the first time in 2025 at Lexington’s historic track.
Originally scheduled to start Friday, this year’s Spring Meet won’t begin until Sunday due to severe weather that’s sweeping through Kentucky.
As such, Friday’s racing card has been shifted to Monday and Saturday’s racing card has been moved to Tuesday. Free General Admission will be available to Keeneland patrons on both Monday and Tuesday.
Aside from this change, it will be business as usual as horse racing returns to Central Kentucky this spring.
The Spring Meet at Keeneland will run from Sunday until April 25. Aside from next week, there will be no racing on Mondays and Tuesdays. There will also be no racing on April 20, which is Easter Sunday.
Over the next few weeks, Keeneland will host 19 stakes races worth a combined $9.4 million, which is a record for the Spring Meet. The headline races from this group — the Grade 1, $750,000 Central Bank Ashland for fillies and the Grade 1, $1.25 million Toyota Blue Grass on the road to the Kentucky Derby — will be held Monday and Tuesday, respectively.
With the return of horse racing in Lexington just around the corner, here’s what you need to know for the 2025 Spring Meet at Keeneland.
Severe weather delays start of 2025 Spring Meet at Keeneland
To reiterate what was already mentioned, the start to the 2025 Spring Meet at Keeneland has shifted a few days because of the weather.
Due to a forecast featuring severe storms and significant flooding, Keeneland made the call to shift Friday’s racing card to Monday and Saturday’s racing card to Tuesday.
Friday’s card, which will now be run Monday, includes: The Grade 1, $750,000 Central Bank Ashland, the Grade 3, $600,000 Transylvania and the Listed, $400,000 Lafayette.
Saturday’s card, which will now be run Tuesday, includes: The Grade 1, $1.25 Million Toyota Blue Grass, the Grade 1, $650,000 Resolute Racing Madison, the Grade 2, $500,000 Appalachian, the Grade 2, $400,000 Valvoline Global Shakertown and the Grade 3, $350,000 Commonwealth.
This represents eight of the 19 stakes races that will be run this month at Keeneland. Two other stakes races — the Grade 2, $400,000 MiddleGround Capital Beaumont and the Listed, $300,000 Palisades — will be run Sunday, which is now opening day for the track.
The move by Keeneland officials to alter the track’s racing schedule is exceedingly rare. On the opening day of the Spring Meet in 2015, the final four races of a 10-race card were canceled because of severe weather. That was believed by Keeneland officials then to be the first time races were ever called off because of weather.
In addition to the free General Admission available to patrons on Monday and Tuesday, racing fans who previously purchased General Admission tickets for Friday and Saturday will be able to use those tickets for single entry on any race day during the Spring Meet, including dates that are sold out.
Key qualifiers scheduled for the Kentucky Oaks, Kentucky Derby
Two of the races affected by Keeneland’s schedule change are the two most important races held during the Spring Meet.
Monday’s Grade 1, $750,000 Central Bank Ashland is a key qualifier for fillies for the 151st Kentucky Oaks, which will be run May 2 at Churchill Downs in Louisville.
Tuesday’s Grade 1, $1.25 Million Toyota Blue Grass is a key qualifier for the 151st Kentucky Derby, to be held May 3 at Churchill.
The Ashland — which will be contested by 3-year-old fillies — awards qualifying points toward the Kentucky Oaks on a 100-50-25-15-10 scale to the top five finishers. The Ashland will be the final qualifying race for the Oaks.
Muhimma, trained by Louisville-based Brad Cox, is the 9-5 morning-line favorite in a field of eight in the Ashland. Of the eight horses in the Ashland field, only La Cara (51.75 qualifying points) is projected to make the starting gate for the Kentucky Oaks.
This will be the 88th running of the Ashland, which is set to go 1 1/16-miles on Keeneland’s main track.
Similarly, the Blue Grass is a key Derby prep race that will award qualifying points toward the Run for the Roses on a 100-50-25-15-10 scale to the top five finishers. The Blue Grass is the penultimate qualifying race for the Kentucky Derby. The final Derby qualifier will be the Grade 3, $400,000 Stonestreet Lexington on April 12 at Keeneland.
Todd Pletcher-trainee River Thames is the 5-2 morning-line favorite for the Blue Grass in a seven-horse field. Pletcher has trained four previous winners of the Blue Grass, most recently in 2023 with Tapit Trice.
Of the seven horses set to contest the Blue Grass, only Owen Almighty (65 qualifying points) is projected to make the 20-horse Derby field.
The 101st running of the Blue Grass will be contested over 1 1/8 miles on Keeneland’s main track. This year, the $1.25 million purse for the Blue Grass matches the Grade 1 Coolmore Turf Mile (held during the Fall Meet) as the richest races in Keeneland history.
Construction wraps up at Keeneland
This year’s Spring Meet will be the final Keeneland season during which the track’s new three-level Paddock Building is under construction.
The new Paddock Building — which will also establish a new East Gate entrance to the track — will stretch the length of the Saddling Paddock and Walking Ring. It’s set to open in the fall. The creation of the Paddock Building will provide new ticketed experiences for more than 1,000 fans during race meets.
These include bar concepts and dining options, as well as access to a new Paddock Lawn. This construction project also calls for the creation of new Jockeys Quarters.
Construction on this project began in January 2024. This endeavor is the largest capital project undertaken since Keeneland opened in 1936, and it’s the track’s first major construction event since the Keeneland Library was built in 2002.
“Definitely anytime that you take a project like this, at a location like Keeneland, you’re taking a risk,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin told the Herald-Leader in October. “But we got really comfortable just because we were guided back to our mission, which is to increase the interest in the sport, be a model racetrack, be a model sales company. This building, we’ll be able to use (it) for both our race meets and also our sales, where we host people from 50 different countries. We want our patrons to have the best experience they can in sales, as well.”
Stakes schedule for 2025 Spring Meet at Keeneland
Here is the complete schedule of all 19 stakes races that are to be run this month at Keeneland during the Spring Meet.
▪ Grade 2, $400,000 MiddleGround Capital Beaumont on Sunday, April 6.
▪ Listed, $300,000 Palisades (turf) on Sunday, April 6.
▪ Grade 1, $750,000 Central Bank Ashland on Monday, April 7.
▪ Grade 3, $600,000 Transylvania (turf) on Monday, April 7.
▪ Listed, $400,000 Lafayette on Monday, April 7.
▪ Grade 1, $1.25 Million Toyota Blue Grass on Tuesday, April 8.
▪ Grade 1, $650,000 Resolute Racing Madison on Tuesday, April 8.
▪ Grade 2, $500,000 Appalachian (turf) on Tuesday, April 8.
▪ Grade 2, $400,000 Valvoline Global Shakertown (turf) on Tuesday, April 8.
▪ Grade 3, $350,000 Commonwealth on Tuesday, April 8.
▪ Grade 1, $650,000 Maker’s Mark Mile (turf) on Friday, April 11.
▪ Listed, $300,000 FanDuel Limestone (turf) on Friday, April 11.
▪ Grade 1, $650,000 Jenny Wiley (turf) on Saturday, April 12.
▪ Grade 3, $400,000 Stonestreet Lexington on Saturday, April 12.
▪ Grade 3, $350,000 Giant’s Causeway (turf) on Sunday, April 13.
▪ Grade 3, $350,000 Baird Doubledogdare on Friday, April 18.
▪ Grade 2, $400,000 VisitLEX Elkhorn (turf) on Saturday, April 19.
▪ Grade 3, $350,000 Ben Ali on Saturday, April 19.
▪ Grade 3, $350,000 Bewitch (turf) on Friday, April 25.
This story was originally published April 4, 2025 at 8:00 AM.
