For more than a century, the Triple Crown produced 13 outstanding horses that raced and dominated the three-part leg series- 13 top-quality, top-bred, and excellent horses. But out of the 13, one horse remains to be just out of the league when it comes to its greatness- Secretariat.
Why is it that Secretariat holds so much recognition in the horse racing industry more than the other Triple Crown winners? Why does his name still ring a bell even after so many years since he conquered the Triple Crown trophy? What about him makes a household name, and more than that, why makes Secretariat a horse racing legend?
With the ongoing triple crown event right now, let’s get into one of the best horses who’ve raced in the Triple Crown and discover Secretariat’s life in his early racing days and how he became the horse racing legend that he is now.
The Making Of Secretariat
Secretariat is a stallion with a chestnut coat. Checking his bred references, he was a bred of Christopher Chenery’s Meadow Stud under Meadow Stable. He was sired by Bold Ruler and by his dam, Somethingroyal.
Both genes shared a lot of contribution to the Secretariat’s strong abilities as Bold Ruler is an American Thoroughbred Hall of Fame racehorse, and Somethingroyal was sired by Princequillo, who was also known to win significant victories in long-distance races.
With the breed reference alone, Secretariat already holds so much advantage. That’s not the only thing that separates Secretariat from other horses. When it comes to appearance and conformation, Secretariat was called “nearly perfect.”
This means his conformations and biomechanics are exceptionally well-balanced, making him the perfect horse to race and win any race. Many were in awe when they saw Secretariat at an early age, but everything changed when he matured. Secretariat grew up to be one of the most amazing horses to be bred in the entire horse racing industry.
The Early Racing Days of Secretariat
As a young horse, Secretariat didn’t show so much glamour. When he started training, his early races among other horses were not impressive enough to make his riders like him.
Charlie Davis, for one, his regular riders made a bad impression on Secretariat because of his size. He’s big, and he’s not running as fast as the others his age. But that changed when Secretariat started to get on with the business as days passed by.
As Chenery would like to call it, Secretariat was still trying to learn to run and losing his baby fat. The training regimen was adjusted, and instead of track bandages, Secretariat wore blinkers to make sure he’s focused. And for the first time, Secretariat ran like a bullet, finishing the 6 furlongs by 1:124⁄5 on a sloppy track.
And this made a signal for Chenery to make a call; Secretariat was ready to race. And who would have thought that the once big and fat horse would dominate the triple crown?
Secretariat’s First Race And Wins
When Secretariat was ready to run his first race, he was a 2-year old Thoroughbred horse. It was a rough start for Secretariat and his trainer Lucien Laurin. His first run was made in Aqueduct Racetrack on July 4, 1972.
Secretariat was ready, but not entirely; he almost threw the race but made a comeback and finished the race from 10th place to 4th. 11 days later, Secretariat stormed off the race track and quickly became a crowd favorite. This time, Ron Turcotte was his official jockey.
At the end of 1972, Secretariat and Ron had won seven of nine races, including the Garden State Stakes, Sanford Stakes, Hopeful Stakes, three-second Laurel Futurity, and the Belmont Futurity. In the same year, he was recognized as the Horse of the Year.
At age three, that was the peak of the racing career for Secretariat. Everything shifted, and the young stallion was now full-grown. He was ready for the big game- the Triple Crown.
The Triple Crown Journey
Even after a major stable moment where Chris Penery died, Cherry was forced to manage and syndicate Secretariat. By then, she sold 32 shares of the horse for a record $6.08 million. But every penny was worth it. Secretariat won the 1973 Aqueduct Racetrack and was ready for the bigger league. They signed up for the Kentucky Derby.
A come-from-behind win and a record of 1:59 2/5th, Secretariat won the Kentucky Derby, and it’s not only that, he recorded the fastest time ever in the history of the derby. Moving on to race for the Preakness Stakes, Secretariat took the crowd with a bang as he again won the race with style. Coming from behind, Secretariat dashed off and finished the race at precisely 1:53 time record. He was breaking all the records of the race, and until now, it’s unbeaten.
Secretariat appeared in many sports magazines after these two consecutive races highlighted and in the spotlight as an amazing horse. Now came the Test of the Champions, the Belmont Stakes. Ridden by Ron Turcotte, Secretariat didn’t disappoint; he finished the race in just 2 minutes and 24 seconds- the fastest time ever recorded.
Conclusion
These race results made Secretariat a big name in horse racing. A legendary horse with a very humble beginning. In his 16-month career, Secretariat garnered $1,316,808 total winnings with 16 first places, three second places, and once he came in third. An outstanding record which no horse came close to beating. There’s no wonder Secretariat was one legendary horse. And because of such acknowledgment, a film was made inspired by the story of the horse. Secretariat is a true legend, and his name will always be written in the dirt of every race track in American horse racing history.