World champion Mr Jet Moore won the inaugural running of the $50,000 Champion of Champions on December 23, 1972, at Los Alamitos Race Course.

© Los Alamitos Race Course

LOS ALAMITOS, CA–NOVEMBER 17, 2023–The prestigious Grade 1 Champion of Champions, which this year features the nation’s richest purse for older Quarter Horses at $750,000, will offer a $1,000,000 purse in 2024 announced Ed Allred, owner of Los Alamitos Race Course.

 "The Champion of Champions is a special race that is dear to my heart," Allred said. "It’s a race that was dreamed up by the outstanding and wonderful individuals who were members of the board of the Horsemen’s Quarter Horse Racing Association in the early 1970s. As such, the tradition and history of this race as the best in Quarter Horse racing is very important to me and to all of us at Los Alamitos Race Course."        

Held at Los Alamitos since 1972, the Champion of Champions for 3-year-olds and upwards has been the most impactful race in deciding the American Quarter Horse Association World Champion title.

Over the years, 31 of the 50 Champion of Champions winners have gone on to win that year’s AQHA World Champion title.  Among them is the reigning AQHA World Champion Empressum, who won last year’s Champion of Champions in one of the most memorable runnings ever of the 440-yard classic.

Empressum will look to defend his Champion of Champions title on Saturday, December 9 when he leads another stellar field here against the likes of two-time Champion of Champions winner Apollitical Pence, Los Alamitos Super Derby winner Jeriko, All American Derby winner Whiskey Creek, multiple Grade 1 winner Scoops Dynasty and five other standouts.

Next year’s Champion of Champions will mark only the second time in its 52-year history that it will feature a $1,000,000 purse. The first time was in 2007 when eventual AQHA World Champion Blues Girl Too spectacularly won the event while setting a track record at 440 yards.

The first Champion of Champions winner was Mr Jet Moore when he outdueled champions Kaweah Bar and Charger Bar in 1972. Since then, Easy Date, Dash For Cash, Dashs Dream, First Down Dash, Refrigerator, SLM Big Daddy, Apollitical Jess, and He Looks Hot are among the World Champions that won the prestigious Champion of Champions. The $1,000,000 Champion of Champions will be held at Los Alamitos on Saturday, December 14, 2024.

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For more info' please contact larace@losalamitos.com. Follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @losalracing or visit us online at www.losalamitos.com.