A horse race is a competitive event that involves horses and either jockeys or sulkies pulled by drivers. It can be a thrilling event to watch and can be exciting for those who place a bet on it. It is an event that has a long and storied history and has become a part of popular culture in many places. Throughout the years, it has seen its popularity wax and wane with economic prosperity and depression, war and peace. But it has always had an appeal that is hard to beat.

During the earliest times, horse races were match races between two or at most three horses. These early races were based on a simple wager between the owners and the horses were matched by their speeds and experience levels. A person who won the bet received half or, later, the entire purse of the race. A record of these agreements was maintained by a disinterested third party, called a keeper or match book. These became more formalized when John Cheny began publishing An Historical List of All Matches Run (1729).

Today, horse racing is a global sport that attracts people from all over the world. In addition to betting on which horse will cross the finish line first, second and third, people also bet on accumulator bets in which they bet on several different horses at once. The resulting bets are then placed in a pool and the winner is declared at the end of the race.

Although the sport of horse racing has a rich and storied history, there are some concerns about its future. Some people are concerned about the treatment of the animals and their well-being. Others are concerned about the financial viability of the industry as it struggles to maintain a dwindling number of fans and race days. Still, the sport has made some important improvements in recent years and continues to make positive changes.

When a horse enters the claiming ranks, it means that he has not won a stakes race and is not considered to be among the top-rated horses in his class. These lowered entry standards are meant to create a level playing field and provide an opportunity for horses who have been able to win in lower classes to continue to compete on a level playing field with the top-rated horses.

Horses must pass through a series of conditioned claiming races before they can step up to open or maiden special weight races. These are races that do not have any performance limitations in the conditions and offer an even opportunity for horses with all sorts of experience levels to compete on equal terms. Once a horse has climbed through the conditioned claiming ranks, it can move up to graded stakes races, which have higher purses, prestige and history. Alternatively, a horse can run in non-graded stakes races. The racing secretary or a track handicapper assigns these races their grades with the goal of giving each horse an equal chance to win the race.