Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes
| Class | Grade I |
|---|---|
| Location | Gulfstream Park Hallandale Beach, Florida, United States |
| Inaugurated | 2017 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred – Flat racing |
| Website | www |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 1+1⁄8 miles (9 furlongs) |
| Surface | Dirt |
| Track | left-handed |
| Qualification | Four-year-olds and up |
| Weight | 124 pounds (56 kg) with allowances |
| Purse | $3 million (2023) |
The Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race whose first running was on January 28, 2017 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida. It is run over the dirt at the distance of 1+1⁄8 miles (9 furlongs) and is open to horses four years old and up. The Grade I rating was assumed from the Donn Handicap.
With a purse of $12 million for its inaugural running, the Pegasus World Cup surpassed the Dubai World Cup as the richest horse race in the world for the year 2017 & 2018. The purse of the event rose to $16 million in 2018, but dropped to $9 million in 2019. The fourth running of the Pegasus World Cup in 2020 carried a $3 million purse. The entry fee structure has also changed over time, from $1 million in 2017 and 2018, to $500,000 in 2019 to free in 2020.
Horses carry 124 pounds (56 kg) with a three-pound allowance for fillies and mares. Between 2017 and 2019, horses that ran without the use of the pre-race medication furosemide (more commonly known as Lasix) received an allowance of five pounds. Starting in 2020, the use of all race-day medications, including Lasix, is prohibited, which the Stronach Group heralded as a "new era" in North American thoroughbred racing.
The race is named for Pegasus, a Greek mythical horse, a 110-foot statue of which stands at Gulfstream Park. The Pegasus has been described as "Florida's Greatest Horse Race" by Maxim magazine.