The Dinner Party Stakes (Grade 2)- $250.00 Purse
LRL- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Eighth on the Turf
May 16, 2026

This Saturday, all eyes will be on LRL as the track hosts the normal slate of races from PIM over PRK weekend. As a part of that undercard, we will have the 22nd running of The Dinner Party Stakes, which is a nine furlong event on the turf course. The race has seen a lot of fluctuation with its purse over the years, dipping as low as $150.00, while having a one-off peak of $500.00 just two years ago. The present $250.00 is the most common purse that the race has gone for. Columbia River, perhaps a forgotten great, was the first winner of the Dinner Party Stakes, and we have gone on to see Bronze Sabre also win, as well Seven Years twice. Last year, it was Ello Santa picking up the victory, which at the time was the second of four big graded wins for him in a row. He’s still very successful now and had a solid effort in the Forester Turf Classic a couple weeks ago at CD. We’ll have a field of six for this year’s edition, so let’s meet them now,

1- Gatorbyte (Winning Link Stables, ridden by B Curtis)- This four year old gelding by Terabyte gets the biggest test of his career here. He was acquired for $10.00 last December, with his only win being a maiden claimer at DMR though he bad been very consistent with in the money finishes before hand. With Winning Link Stables, Gatorbyte has run three times, with two strong efforts in overnights leading to an entry in the $150.00 Appleton at GP last time out. While he did not cash a check, he ran well, and when you consider his strong works, it makes sense to give him this opportunity.

2- Whoa Bo (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by Mar Garcia)- Over his 35 race career, Whoa Bo has been very successful, with eight wins and two appearances in the BC Turf Sprint. He finished third in that race in 2024, which is part of his nearly $1,500.00 in career earnings. He’s been able to hit the board regularly and earn triple digit SRF’s, but he has not won since the Grade 2 Highlander Stakes in June, and when that happened, it snapped a 13-month winless streak before it. To try and get Whoa Bo back in the winner’s circle, Maxmillion Farm has run him long in his last two starts, and got two more in the money finishes, but no wins. Perhaps this will be the day for him.

3- Tom Kha Gai (High Voltage, ridden by J Lezcano)- Another older veteran on the turf, and this will be his 37th career start. Like Whoa Bo right next to him, Tom Kha Gai has not been winning much of late, as his last victory came in March of 2025 in the Grade 3 San Luis Rey Stakes at SA. While he has been entered in many graded races over his lifetime, that win still stands as the only graded race that he has won, although he’s won a handful of ungraded stakes. Unlike Whoa Bo, he has not been hitting the board with frequency as of late, and comes off two less than exciting performances. In the $110.000 Turf Classic at TAM in March, he was never a factor. He has the ability to rebound, and that needs to happen.

4- Neon Lightning (Nakamura Stables, ridden by R Bejarano)- With over $1,600.00 in earnings, Neon Lightning wears the crown of being the highest earner in the field, and he has done that in half the starts of the two starting to his inside. A strong second half of 2025 went a long way in that, especially when he won the $2,000.00 Gun Runner at KD, but it’s not limited to that, as he also captured the Grade 1 HOL Derby. Moving into this year, he got off to a solid start by running fourth in the Pegasus World Cup Turf, but has been subpar in his last two, including a particular dud last time out in the Grade 2 Elkhorn. This is a great spot for him to bounce back.

5- Side Eye (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- Ran against Neon Lightning in the $2,000.00 Gun Runner, and was within a length of him despite finishing fifth. That’s the only time since January 2025 that Side Eye has not earned a portion of the purse. He’s been lightly raced since the Gun Runner, making just three starts and only one of them is at the stake level: the Grade 2 Twilight Derby, where he was second. Side Eye did run well in running second in a KEE allowance last time out. Overall, he’s had a good career, but lacks that strong signature win.

6- Central Hawkes Bay (Czech Out Farms, ridden by F Geroux)- The big question on this one is which version of Central Hawkes Bay will show up. He’s run five times for Czech Out Farms, following a $25.00 claim by the trainer, and he’s been very good in three of them. This includes a win in the $110.00 Turf Classic at TAM last time out. The problem is, in the other two starts, he has lost by a combined 17 lengths. He didn’t have this inconsistency problem before the claim, so hopefully Czech Out Farms can work out whatever is keeping his gelding from being a reliable runner. If we see the good side, he’s capable of winning. If we don’t, he’ll probably bring up the rear.

Prediction: 2-4-1-5

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES