2026 Cotillion Stakes Preview at Parx Racing

Key Takeaways:

• The Cotillion features a deep, competitive field of nine, led by Kentucky Oaks winner Always a Runner and fellow Grade 1 winner Iron Orchard.
• Pace could be important at Parx, with several runners possessing early speed and closers like Measure potentially benefiting if the front end gets heated.
• Tap to Open is the price play, bringing tactical speed, proven Parx form, and Flavien Prat while continuing to improve.
• Always a Runner is the clear class horse, and her stalking style could give her the right trip if she handles Parx.
• Measure offers another strong option at 4-1, with her Grade 1 form and closing style making her especially interesting if the track favors late runners.

The feature day of the Parx horse racing meet happens Saturday, September 19, with Pennsylvania Derby Day. However, the three-year-old males in the namesake race aren’t the only horses with a shot at top-level glory: sophomore fillies also get a chance to shine in the Grade 1, $1 million Cotillion Stakes. The race covers 1 1/16 miles on the dirt, and a field of nine is set to compete.

The marquee name is Kentucky Oaks (G1) winner Always a Runner, trained by Chad Brown. One of two Grade 1 winners in the field, she has been second to Counting Stars in her last two starts, both in Grade 1 company at Saratoga, and now gets away from that foe. She does, however, meet Counting Stars’ stablemate Measure, who most recently finished second, beaten a neck by My Gun’s Loaded – Always a Runner’s stablemate! – in the Alabama (G1). The other Grade 1 winner in the field is Iron Orchard, last year’s Frizette (G1) winner who may be getting back on track after a blowout win against New York-breds last out.

An older tradition than the Pennsylvania Derby, the Cotillion was established in 1969 at Liberty Bell Park. The race had a top-class beginning, as the great Shuvee won that first edition. In 1974, the race was moved to Keystone Racetrack, the track we now know as Parx Racing and Casino, and it has been run there ever since.

After Shuvee, some of the most important winners include Hall of Famers Susan’s Girl and Ashado. Like the Pennsylvania Derby, the profile of the Cotillion has risen through the 2010s and early 2020s, with some of its more recent winners including Close Hatches, Untapable, Songbird, Midnight Bisou, and Thorpedo Anna.

Cotillion Stakes Information

• Race Date: Saturday, Sept. 19
• Track: Parx Racing in Bensalem, PA
• Post Time: 4:58 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time
• Distance: 1 1/16 miles on the main track
• Age/Sex: 3-year-old fillies
• Where to Watch: FanDuel TV
• Where to Bet: FanDuel Racing

2026 Cotillion Stakes Draw and Odds

This is the field of nine three-year-old fillies entered in the 2026 Cotillion Stakes, including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds.

Cotillion Stakes Prep Race Results

All but one of the runners in the Cotillion come out of stakes company, and five of the nine runners were last seen in graded company.

Two of the horses in the field come out of the Coaching Club American Oaks (G1), a 1 ⅛-mile race at Saratoga on July 25. Always a Runner tracked the pace and finished second, 4 ¼ lengths behind Counting Stars; Zany stalked in closer range and flattened to fourth, 8 ¾ lengths beaten. Measure was third in that same race but has raced once since – she returned in the 1 ¼-mile Alabama (G1) on August 22, also at the Spa, and rallied from last to finish second, just a neck behind My Gun’s Loaded.

Another pair comes out of the Monmouth Oaks (G3) on July 25. My Miss Mo led at every call, earning a 1 ½-length victory. The horse pressing her pace that day, and who ultimately finished second, was Bodacious Bay, who was then trained by Rodolphe Brisset but is now My Miss Mo’s stablemate in the Saffie Joseph, Jr. barn.

Three others last raced in ungraded stakes. The top two finishers from the Cathryn Sophia, a one-mile, 70-yard local prep on August 18, press on to the Cotillion. Tap to Open, the odds-on favorite that day, had to battle hard with Ms Sophistication. Tap To Open got the decision by a head, but the narrowly beaten Ms Sophistication comes back for another round. Iron Orchard, a Grade 1-winning juvenile who was still finding her way at age three, ran her best race yet this year when she won the 1 ⅛-mile Fleet Indian at Saratoga on August 21, leading at every call and drawing off to win by 12 lengths over a group of state-bred sophomore fillies.

The only one coming out of a non-stakes race is Savor It. She chased on for second in a local allowance-optional claiming sprint going six furlongs against older fillies and mares.

Cotillion Stakes Contenders

These are the nine contenders in the 2026 Cotillion Stakes, sorted by their post positions.

1. My Miss Mo: She is an up-and-coming horse with good form at the Grade 2 and Grade 3 level; it’s a logical time to try her at the top level, and this is a sensible spot. She has early speed, something that should play well at Parx. However, the post draw isn’t great – she’s mired on the rail in a field with other sharp speed to her outside, meaning she’s either going to have to hit the early gas hard or do some finagling to get the right trip. It’s not impossible, of course, and Tyler Gaffalione has ridden her both on the front end and in stalk-and-pounce style.
2. Bodacious Bay: It’s a little interesting to see her here – classwise she’s no surprise, as she was second to My Miss Mo in the Monmouth Oaks. But last out, she was the horse from the Rodolphe Brisset barn who was giving My Miss Mo the pace pressure, and after a private sale she is now My Miss Mo’s stablemate. She has never run out of the exacta and should have no problem with the distance, but the near inside post with speed both inside and outside her may make this a difficult assignment, despite Joseph doing so well with horses making their first start for his barn.
3. Zany: She was a major presence on the Kentucky Oaks trail after a blowout win in the Demoiselle (G2) last fall, and even after a runner-up finish in the Ashland (G1), she still went favored in the Kentucky Oaks two starts back. She ran a no-threat sixth that day, and after she weakened to fourth in the CCA Oaks last out, it’s a question whether she has trained on with the top of her class. The blinkers did get her a little more forward last out, something that should play well at Parx, but she still has to finish the job, and she still stands to get significantly overbet since her back class is better than any of her recent form.
4. Always a Runner: The Kentucky Oaks winner has never run a bad race, finding the exacta in all five of her races to date. Even though speed plays well at Parx, there is enough pace in this race that running a stalking style could work out very well. She showed that dimension last-out – and though she was defeated, it was a very different setup, since Counting Stars had her own way on the lead, and no horse is going to get that kind of trip in the Cotillion. In short, she’s the favorite, and there are good reasons for her to be the goods here.
5. Iron Orchard: She won her first three career starts, but stumbled at the start in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies and has struggled since. Her last race was a step in the right direction, though – the one-turn races earlier this year didn’t go all that well, but she stretched out to 1 ⅛ miles for the first time in the Fleet Indian, got the lead, and just dominated on the front end. However, this is a huge step up – now she goes from facing New York-breds to facing top sophomore fillies. Luis Saez should ride her aggressively, much like Jose Ortiz (who decamps to Always a Runner) did last out, but with pace on both sides, she’s either going to have to tap back into a more tactical style or work really hard every step of the way.
6. Savor It: Trainer Uriah St. Lewis has upset some big races, but this doesn’t look like one of them. To Savor It’s credit, she has proved she can handle the dirt at Parx – she has hit the board in five of her 12 starts, and all those money finishes have come on the dirt in Bensalem. However, she has never been competitive in stakes company, even over her local course, and has never run a race to suggest that she’ll be in the mix in this, her first try in top-level company.
7. Ms Sophistication: She was coming into herself in the mid-Atlantic, and trainer Jorge Duarte tried her in stakes company for the first time in the Cathryn Sophia, the local prep on August 18. She did well: she stalked the pace, made it to the lead, and just missed holding off the re-rally of Tap to Open. She is coming into her own, and she can handle Parx well. But, it’s a concern that Duarte’s runners tend to underperform in graded-stakes races.
8. Measure: Measure has more than enough class for this spot – though she has only won once in seven starts, she has hit the board at the top level in her last two starts, missing by just a neck in the Alabama (G1) last out. She can clearly handle those longer distances, though a cut back to 1 1/16 miles may not be the worst thing, since that’s the distance of her maiden win at Churchill Downs. She doesn’t need an extremely fast pace to close into, but it obviously doesn’t hurt her style – and there’s enough speed in this race to make it worth watching how the track plays. If horses are getting even a somewhat fair shake making late runs if the pace gets fast, Measure moves up.
9. Tap to Open: She has plenty of speed, but she proved two back that she can get a pressing trip and win, and even proved last out that she can get passed and come back. She also proved last out that she can handle the dirt at Parx, which is always a question, even among classy stakes horses. She keeps rider Flavien Prat in the irons; she should be able to get an outside stalking trip, and the grit she shows race after race makes her attractive to keep fighting and be a serious win candidate at a price.

Cotillion Stakes: 3 Best Bets

These are the three best bets in the Cotillion Stakes:

1. Tap to Open (8-1)

Speed is a great asset to have at Parx, and Tap to Open has plenty of it. She has the driver’s seat drawing on the outside, especially since she has shown she can be tactical with it – important, since it gives her the opportunity to stay just off a duel if one gets really hot, and still be able to stay engaged and make that first run. This is Parx, so you usually don’t want to be too far off the pace – but just like anywhere, having that tactical gear at a price is always a good thing to find.

Parx is also a very love-it-or-hate-it course. Some horses can bring their form there just fine, while it’s not uncommon for a horse to come out to Parx for this race or the Pennsylvania Derby and just randomly lay an egg. Tap to Open, unlike so many of the major contenders in this race, has already answered that question by winning the local prep. She has class to prove – but she’s going the right way. She has tactical speed and the ability to fight, and she keeps jockey Flavien Prat, a big-race rider who even saw fit to come to Parx for the prep a month ago, a sign of confidence. In short, she has a lot of upside.

2. Always a Runner (8-5)

Always a Runner is going to be the favorite, but it would be no surprise if she turns out to be the goods in this spot. The Kentucky Oaks winner, she has been defeated in her last two starts but hasn’t run badly in either – just got beaten by another top-class, in-form filly in Counting Stars, someone she won’t have to face off against in this spot.

The question is going to be how she handles Parx – both in terms of the footing, and in terms of how the race shape affects things. The footing, of course, we won’t know until she tries it, but she has won at three different tracks and run two good second-place efforts at Saratoga, suggesting that she isn’t the kind who needs to take her track with her. In terms of pace, the more tactical style she tried last out makes her more interesting than she otherwise would be just looking at her late-running efforts earlier in her career; a trip like she got last out should work out to her advantage, especially if she comes back as sharp off the layoff as Chad Brown horses tend to.

3. Measure (4-1)

Mark Casse doesn’t send his top sophomore filly, Counting Stars, but he does send his up-and-comer, Measure, who actually finished ahead of Counting Stars and almost won the 1 ¼-mile Alabama last out. She now cuts back to the distance at which she broke her maiden last November at Churchill Downs, and should be in a good part of her form cycle third off a freshening.

It is worth checking the track bias before using her too heavily – she is definitely a midpack-to-closing type, though she has been able to really and even win while closing into pace setups that didn’t completely collapse. The presence of so many speed horses in this race should be a good setup for Measure, and she has shown that she can string together good races, suggesting that she should be making a run. Make sure that the track isn’t playing completely unfair to closers – if dirt races earlier in the day are seeing speed hold despite dizzying fractions, perhaps keep Measure near the bottom of trifectas or superfectas. But, if the race holds together and closers can rally into sharp paces early in the day, she’s worth a long look.

Cotillion Stakes FAQ

Q: When and where is the Cotillion Stakes?

A: The race happens on Saturday, September 19, at Parx Racing in Bensalem, PA. Scheduled as the 13th of 15 on the card, the race is set to go at 4:58 p.m. Eastern Standard Time as the co-featured race along with the Pennsylvania Derby.

Q: Which trainer has the most wins in the Cotillion Stakes?

A: Steve Asmussen leads all trainers with five wins in the Cotillion between 2012 and 2022. He can extend that record this year if Iron Orchard wins.

Q: Who is the favorite for the Cotillion Stakes?

A: Kentucky Oaks winner Always a Runner is the 8-5 morning-line favorite for the Cotillion. She is likely to hold as a heavy choice: even though she hasn’t won since the Kentucky Oaks, she has continued to run well in Grade 1 company, finishing second to Counting Stars in both the CCA Oaks and the Acorn. That kind of class and consistency for trainer Chad Brown will keep her at the top of the market.

Q: Who is the best Cotillion Stakes jockey?

A: Mike Smith leads all jockeys with four wins in the Cotillion. He has won the race with Jostle (2000), Close Hatches (2013), Songbird (2016), and Midnight Bisou (2018). Smith does not ride the race this year. All nine jockeys in the 2026 edition seek their first win.

Q: Who won the Cotillion Stakes in 2025?

A: Clicquot won the 2025 Cotillion Stakes for trainer Brendan Walsh and jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. Neither Walsh nor Ortiz returns to the race in 2026.