Recent Charles Town Classic winners highlight noms
CT Oaks, supporting race nominations also told
Press Release
August 18, 2026
Defending Charles Town Classic winner Banishing and two-time Charles Town Classic-victor Skippylongstocking lead a list of 72 nominations for the $1 million Charles Town Classic (GII) and $750,000 Charles Town Oaks (GII), which closed this past Friday. The Classic and Oaks will both be run on Charles Town’s biggest night of the year – Friday, August 28 – a card that features nine stakes races with over $2.8 million in purse money on the line.
“We’re extremely pleased with the depth and quality of this year’s nominations for the Charles Town Classic Festival card,” said Charlie McIntosh, Director of Racing Operations at Charles Town. “Having proven stars and past winners of the race like Banishing and Skippylongstocking return, alongside so many graded stakes performers, positions us for another outstanding night of racing and entertainment on August 28.”
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Coming off a banner five-year-old season including his win in the Charles Town Classic, Banishing has since added a win in the Godolphin Mile (GII) at Meydan for co-owner and trainer David Jacobson. Like he did in 2025, Banishing will be coming into the Classic off a win in the Jeff Hall Memorial Stakes at Ellis Park. He’ll be looking to join Researcher, Imperative, Art Collector, and Skippylongstocking as two-time winners of West Virginia’s richest race. The latter will be trying to make history of his own this year.
Owned by Daniel Alonso and trained by Saffie Joseph, Jr., Skippylongstocking captured both the 2023 and 2024 renewals of the Classic. Following a disappointing last-place finish in the race in 2025, it was revealed that the son of Exaggerator was dealing with a case of “the thumps” which stems from an electrolyte imbalance. It was ‘Skippy’ doing the thumping earlier this year, however, when he earned his first career Grade-1 triumph in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational (GI) at Gulfstream Park. Joseph, who also nominated Grade 2 winner Forged Steel, Grade 3 winner Navajo Warrior, and Full Screen to the race, has indicated that Skippylongstocking will be back this year looking to become the first three-time winner of the Classic.
Trainer Mike Maker has Willy D’s back in the Classic nominations following his runner-up performance in the race last year. The son of Lookin At Lucky has since added the Kentucky Cup Classic (GIII) to his resume and is considered probable for this year’s race.
Barbadian Runner won the Robert Hilton Memorial (L) on the 2025 Charles Town Classic undercard. Trainer Henry Walters has nominated the son of West Virginia stallion Barbados for the Classic, and he is also considered a probable for the race.
Brad Cox nominated Grade 1 winner Hit Show, multiple Grade 3 winner Dragoon Guard, and Grade 3-placed Money Game to the Classic. Hit Show is expected to run in the Pacific Classic, while the latter two are possible for the race.
Grade 1 winners Subsanador (ARG) and The Goat (CHI) headline a possible California contingent for the Classic, though the former is expected to remain at Del Mar for the Pacific Classic. The latter is possible for the race.
Trainer Michael McCarthy has nominated Grade 3 winner Bullard and Malarchuk to the Classic, and the former is under strong consideration for the Classic.
North America’s all-time winningest trainer Steve Asmussen is represented in the nominations by a pair of Grade 2 winners in Tiztastic and Gigante.
Other notable nominations include Grade 2 winners Coal Battle (Lonnie Briley), Wynstock (Joe Sharp), and Maycocks Bay (Michael Stidham), as well as Grade 3 winners Silent Tactic (Mark Casse), Chunk of Gold (Ethan West), and Heroic Move (Robertino Diodoro).
This year’s Charles Town Oaks marks its third year as a Grade 2 and remains the richest sprint stakes on dirt for three-year-old fillies in North America. The nominations are headlined by Grade 2 winner My Miss Mo (Joseph), Grade 3 winner Luv Your Neighbor (Stidham), along with promising stakes winners Mashallah (Brendan Walsh) and West Virginia-bred At a Premium (David Walters). Of the 30 nominees, twelve are stakes winners, with three others having achieved graded stakes-placed status.
The $500,000 Robert Hilton Memorial (L) for three-year-olds and the $300,000 Misty Bennett Pink Ribbon Stakes for older fillies and mares closed with 29 and 45 nominations respectively.
Entries for the August 28 Charles Town Classic and Oaks card will be taken on Saturday, August 22. Classic and Oaks night begins at a special first post time of 5 p.m. ET.
The card will be bolstered by a mandatory payout of the Charles Town 6-12 jackpot of $96,819 which has been frozen following this past Saturday’s card. The pool on the all-stakes sequence is expected to exceed $750,000 on Classic and Oaks night. The Pick 6 will not be offered on any of this week’s three racing cards or the Thursday, August 27 card.
The first race of the Charles Town Classic card is scheduled to honor long-time Charles Town mutuel teller Patricia “Patsy” Kelican for her 60 years of service at the racetrack.
The Charles Town Classic Festival kicks off at 4 p.m. on race day and will feature four live bands, over 20 food trucks, family-friendly entertainment, and a VIP viewing experience. Admission to the Charles Town Classic Festival is free.
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