An annual horse race is a race that takes place once a year and typically involves thoroughbred horses. The most famous of these races is the Kentucky DERBY, which has been held annually since 1875. The DERBY is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of one and a quarter miles at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. It is the first leg of the American Triple Crown and is followed by the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes.