FIRST CLAIMING RACE

Fires when today's race has a claiming price and the most recent race type is a non-claiming class such as allowance, stakes, maiden special weight, or graded stakes. Horses running in their first claiming race face new variables: claiming pressure (any horse can be claimed for the stated price), often a different competitive environment, and connections who may be testing the horse at a new class type. The transition from protected company to the claiming ranks is not always smooth.