The New York Sire Stakes will award record purses for all three series finals next season as well as a significant increase to the Breeders Award program in 2025.

The Agriculture & New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund Board approved today (Sept. 6) the following purse totals for the 2025 series finals:

• New York Sire Stakes Finals: $300,000 USD
• Excelsior Series Finals: $100,000 USD
• County Fair Series Finals: $25,000 USD

The Breeders Awards program, which provides rewards for each level of New York Sire Stakes racing, will now offer $1.75 million USD to be distributed to eligible breeders for the 2025 season. The awards are based on residency, and are available to breeders who breed their mares to New York-registered stallions and keep those mares in New York for at least 180 consecutive days during the calendar year including conception.

“Harness racing is part of the fabric of New York’s culture, and this notable investment helps support and grow the industry into 2025 and beyond,” said Agriculture & New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund Executive Director Ralph Scunziano. “On the heels of a 2024 season that featured successful statewide investment in racetracks through the County Fair Repair Reimbursement Program, these new purse and award increases will continue the New York Sire Stakes’ positive momentum.”

The Fund also announced that the New York Sires Stakes will add a new stakes race for two-year-olds in 2025 featuring a purse totalling $1 million USD.

The Fund, which promotes agriculture through the breeding of Standardbred horses and equine research in New York, administers the New York Sire Stakes. The New York Sire Stakes serves as a model for in-state breeding and racing programs and is the nation’s oldest harness racing program of its kind.

The New York Sire Stakes hosts its 2024 “Day of Champions” on Saturday, Sept. 7 at historic Yonkers Raceway in Yonkers, N.Y. The “Day of Champions” marks the second of three 2024 series finals that the New York Sire Stakes conducts, followed by the Excelsior Series finals taking place on Friday, Sept. 13 at Vernon Downs Casino Hotel in Vernon, N.Y. The County Fair Series finals were held at Goshen Historic Track on Sept. 1.

(Agriculture & New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund)