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In honor of a *possible* Triple Crown

Middleground said:
Great horse but he lost fair and square.
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I loved Smarty Jones. He was laughing at us because he knew he couldn't win the Belmont.

images (3).jpeg

The Derby is amazing because there are waaaay too many horses on the track. A great test. The Belmont in great because it is longer.

For every Justify there are ten Smartys.

My money was on Bravazo. I liked the way he closed the other 2 races.
 
Howard the Duck said:
That Secretariat still holds all three race records and 2 of the 3 track records 45 years later is all we need to know.

Bob Beamon broke a long jump standard that lasted essentially for 30 years by 2 feet. That new unassailable record only stood for 20 years.
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If Secretariat is #1. Dr. Fager is #1A

This single word, quietly uttered by track announcer Phil Georgeff of Arlington Park, perfectly summed up the feelings of
disbelief in the moments following Dr. Fager’s win in the 1968 Washington Park Handicap. Carrying 134 pounds and facing a
talented field of rivals, Dr. Fager had prevailed with astonishing ease, effortlessly pulling away in the homestretch to win by
10 lengths without any urging from jockey Braulio Baeza. It was a breathtaking performance.

He had also run the one-mile race in 1:32 1/5, shattering the American record for a mile on dirt.
But by clocking a mile in 1:32 1/5, Dr. Fager seemingly raised the bar out of reach. Nearly 50 years have passed since Dr. Fager
elicited a “wow” for the ease of his record-breaking run, yet his record still stands as the untouchable, unbreakable standard for a mile on dirt.

Historically, the distance of one mile has been considered the truest test of a Thoroughbred’s talent. To excel at a mile, a horse needs
the speed of a sprinter, but also the stamina to carry that speed beyond the typical sprint distance of three-quarters of a mile.

The only 2 horse races Dr. Fager ever lost were when Damascus beat Fager at 1 1/4 miles with Damascus being coupled with a 'rabbit'
 
horse racing makes me nervous because i'm afraid that one of them will get hurt. however, because of this thread, i watched the race. pretty impressive, and also, historic. glad that i watched. found out that my mom was watching it live, as well. she has been into horses since she was young.
 
I hear Justify refused an invite to the WH. He said if he wanted to look at a horses ass he would just finish second.
 
Middleground said:
In his own right, Alydar was a great horse. If Affirmed had been born another year, Alydar would have been a TC winner.
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https://www.horseracingnation.com/polls/current/PowerRankings_All_Time#

1
9.43
Secretariat

2
9.42
Man o' War


3
9.40
Spectacular Bid

4
9.37
Dr. Fager


5
9.36
Citation

6
9.34
Native Dancer


7
9.31
Kelso


8
9.31
Seattle Slew

9
9.29
Buckpasser

10
9.28
Affirmed


11
9.28
American Pharoah


12
9.22
Count Fleet


13
9.18
Forego


14
9.18
Ruffian


15
9.18
Shared Belief

16
9.17
Damascus


17
9.11
Swaps


18
9.10
Tom Fool


19
9.07
Round Table


20
9.05
Zenyatta


21
9.05
Seabiscuit


22
9.05
Alydar


23
9.04
Gun Runner


24
9.04
War Admiral


25
9.03
California Chrome
 
Middleground said:
When I was in Saratoga few years back, the racing museum featured a look back at Affirmed. I have always though he was the weakest of the TC winners but I haver to say that my opinion greatly changed after watching most of his races in succession. He was a monster... a machine. He had the most grit, I think, of any other great. Just my 2 cents.
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I'll go there. I think Justify and AP are the two weakest TC winners. I think what made the Alydar/Affirmed season so great was - Alyadar and Affirmed! That rivalry. Like Sham and Secretariat (taking the Belmont out of the equation). I think Affirmed was a great horse. Not the best ever, but a monster nonetheless.
 
Middleground said:
And so we have another TC winner. At least his name is spelled properly. Buffers is one hell of a trainer.
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It still hurts my teeth to see AP's name. How did someone mess that up so badly?

Years ago there was a horse named Deputed Testamony. Yes, spelled wrong. It was supposed to be "Disputed Testimony". But that misspelling was endearing and cute. AP's is just annoying.
 
The one horse that I really wanted to see take it was winning colors.
That was the first time I recognized a stable mate running interference and man I was hot. I did not know it was legal.
Fortunately I did not make it to Canterbury for that race, I planned on betting the rent on her...
 
Middleground said:
In his own right, Alydar was a great horse. If Affirmed had been born another year, Alydar would have been a TC winner.
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Same with Sham who finished 2nd to Secretariat in all 3 races.
 
Lursa said:
Same with Sham who finished 2nd to Secretariat in all 3 races.
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Sham could not compare to Alydar in any way shape or form. Alydar is one of the top 25 thoroughbred racehorses of all time
while Sham was not even considered for HorseRacing Hall of Fame. BTW Sham did not finish 2nd to Big Red in all 3 TC races as Sham was
badly beaten in the Belmont, came in 5th or 6th!
 
slick said:
Sham could not compare to Alydar in any way shape or form. Alydar is one of the top 25 thoroughbred racehorses of all time
while Sham was not even considered for HorseRacing Hall of Fame. BTW Sham did not finish 2nd to Big Red in all 3 TC races as Sham was
badly beaten in the Belmont, came in 5th or 6th!
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Sham was many many lengths behind but I thought he still placed 2nd?
 
Lursa said:
Sham was many many lengths behind but I thought he still placed 2nd?
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Checked HR Nation Sham came in 5th.

5th Sham
Pretense
8.39
F. Martin
L. Pincay
5th, 1973 Belmont Stakes (G1) View Video

BTW, Sham is rated #155 by HR Nation, that's a good rating better than many Derby winners!
 
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slick said:
Checked HR Nation Sham came in 5th.

5th Sham
Pretense
8.39
F. Martin
L. Pincay
5th, 1973 Belmont Stakes (G1) View Video
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Awww. I remember he really did seem to give up in that final race.

Oh well.
 
tres borrachos said:
Justify will try on Saturday something that is one of the hardest things to do, and that's win horse racing's Triple Crown. Good luck Justify!

If anyone has never seen this, it's the vide of the 1973 when the greatest horse in history, Secretariat, won the Triple Crown for the first time in 25 years. But not only that, it was the way he did it. 45 years later and his record time is STILL the record, and in my lifetime it will never be broken. Chic Anderson's call is one of the most famous in sports - and it's been said that Secretariat's performance in 1973 was one of the 5 greatest achievements in sports history.

If you never saw this, it's worth the watch. Only 3 minutes start to finish. It's the greatest achievement I ever saw. And Jack Nicklaus, the brilliant golfer, loved to tell the story about when he watched this live. He was alone in his apartment and he said he started crying as the race was going on. When asked why he cried, he said that all his life he strived for perfection and he didn't believe it was possible, until this race. He said this was perfect. And it was.

https://www.si.com/horse-racing/2018/06/04/belmont-stakes-remembering-secretariat-triple-crown-call-chic-anderson
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Saw big red run at Santa Anita....would have loved to see him at one of the triple crown races

Thanks for the memory
 
Lursa said:
Awww. I remember he really did seem to give up in that final race.

Oh well.
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Sham was pretty beat up after the Derby. He got riled in the starting gate, banged his head and lost a few teeth. Despite the injury it is presumed he ran the 2nd fastest Derby before the 2:00 plateau was beaten by Monarchs in 2001. I say presumed because in the day, the 2nd place finisher's time was not really recorded. His time was estimated to be 1:59 4/5 and 2:00. In the Belmont, his jockey burned him out early, trying to keep up with Secretariat.
 
gdgyva said:
Saw big red run at Santa Anita....would have loved to see him at one of the triple crown races

Thanks for the memory
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I don't recall Big Red running in California. Which race was it?
 
Middleground said:
I don't recall Big Red running in California. Which race was it?
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Would have sworn it was Santa Anita....I remember going with my uncle

And I only went to track twice as a kid....once with him, and once with my grandpa in Chicago area somewhere

I remember seeing the guy who played Quincy at the track....and telling my uncle it was the guy from tv
 
I heard a sports announcer say that if Secretariot had run he would have won by 21 lengths.
 
gdgyva said:
Would have sworn it was Santa Anita....I remember going with my uncle

And I only went to track twice as a kid....once with him, and once with my grandpa in Chicago area somewhere

I remember seeing the guy who played Quincy at the track....and telling my uncle it was the guy from tv
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It might have been Chicago because Secretariat did run at Arlington. As for Quincy, Jack Krugman did own some racehorses. I believe he had a horse that finished 3rd in the Kentucky Derby.
 
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