I’ve been watching him since I was 13 years old in 1973 and all I can ever do is drop my jaw in disbelief, utter “Jesus” or cry. I’ve never, ever seen anything like that horse across the entire universe of possible subjects available for humans to think about. He was that f-ing stupefying.
BIG RED!!!!!! Thanks for the memories. I was 16 when he started the Triple Crown. I can't tell you how many times I've watched his replays - thank GOD we have RUclips!!
+sl7293 Dr Fager is my second favorite horse behind Secretariat. Those were some good races and this is the reasoning I have Said with American Pharaoh, no challengers on the front in The Preakness, Belmont, and BCC.. If Hedevar wasn't entered in two of those races, Damascus never beats Dr. Fager. Any average horse with no pressure on the front end will win most times, let a lone a top horse like Dr Fager.
+sl7293 Nope. The Marlboro was the best field EVER. Period. BTW, nobody knowledgeable about horse racing takes the Blood Horse's poll seriously because of one idiot on the panel of 7 who ranked Secretariat 14th. That was the only reason Man O' War finished at the top. That is mindboggling stupid. There has never before or since been a field with five champions in a single race. Secretariat made the rest look like mediocrities because he was so much the better. No slam on Dr. Fager, Buckpasser, and Damascus, all of whom I remember as a young person in the 1960s. I was a big fan of Damascus in his Triple Crown races, and I wished I was able to have seen him at Claiborne Farm when I visited there in 1989. He was at the Marchmont section of the farm, along with Conquistador Cielo and Spectacular Bid.
+key West SUNSET You have to remember that almost ALL of the TC winners, with the possible exception of Affirmed, were much the best of the three-year-old crop. That is one of the three ways a horse wins the TC. The other two are luck, such as avoiding injury (career-ending injuries cost Tim Tam and Charismatic the TC), and a great jockey (we ALL know, or should know, what actually cost Spectacular Bid his being denied the TC in 1979).
+Susan Nunes The 1967 Woodward featured 3 horses who are ranked among the top 20 horses of the 20th century. That is the only time in history that three horses of such a high caliber raced against one another. It is for that reason that people often claim that this was the greatest field ever assembled. By contrast the 1973 Marlboro featured only one horse ranked among the top 20 horses of the 20th century.
al7293+ I have to agree the 1967 Woodward field was even stronger. Still, the inaugural Marlboro Cup remains easily one of the strongest fields ever assembled in North America (and I dare say elsewhere), with three 3 U.S. Hall of Fame horses, all of whom made Blood-Horse's top 100 N. American horses of the 20th century, plus the Canadian Hall of Famer Kennedy Road, and another champion. (I'm American, but the U.S.-centrism of Blood-Horse not specifying "North American" for that list grates on me.)
Well zenyatta went from a distant lady every race and won every race but one andvonly lost because she didn't see him till to late because if she'd seen him he wouldn't have beat her either because when she did see him she kicked into a 5th gear and almost caught him too.zennyatta the best horse to ever step foot on the track period. Iv followed horse racing my whole life and she was better than cigar and DR. FAGER all the rest Dr. FAGER was the second best horse ever if you never seem him watch his races
@Mike Smith Secretariat was retired at only 3 years old. If you have really followed horse racing "your whole life," you know 3 years is like a teenager for horses. They don't mature until 4 or 5 like Forego. If Secretariat had been allowed to race until he was 6, you could not count high enough all the wins and records he would have
SECRETARIART IN THE LAST 1/4 MILE....JUST LIKE A FREIGHT TRAIN.....NEVER AGAIN WILL WE SEE SUCH A MONSTER AS HE ON A RACE TRACK.....GOD BLESS...R.I.P. CHAMP
I'm so glad Ronnie didn't use the whip. I know it's done, and I don't like it, but our gorgeous, magnificent tremendous machine didn't need it. It would have been insulting. Ronnie just hung on, and let his beautiful Secretariat fly in his own way, with jet-propelled wings on his feet. He was our horse. Technically he belonged to the lovely Penny. But he belonged all of us, the people. RIP Big Red. I miss and love you. We all miss and love you.
What most people don’t realize when they watch this race or the Canadian International is that Secretariat is racing against fully mature horses that were champions in their own right (Riva Ridge won the Derby and Belmont, Kennedy Road was a Canadian Champion 3 years in a row and won several races in the US). All of these other horses are at least 4 years old, Secretariat was still a colt and wasn’t full grown. It would have been amazing to see him run as a 4 year old.
Of course I’m glad that secretariat won. He’s my angel, my second angel is Riva Ridge. And I’m so glad that he was right behind him. Meadow stable had two diamonds.
And what makes it more unbelievable is that he had the viral infection the previous month which clearly caused his dull performance in the Whitney, and made him miss the Travers. I read somewhere that the viral infection would have shut most other horses down for the year. Instead, he comes back and does this in his first race back.
never get tired of watching the greatest perform, how easy must it have been to work with a horse that just loved to run, no encouraging ever needed, his move at the Preakness still sends shivers down my spine...
I think the only reason Riva Ridge didn't win the Triple Crown is because he didn't run well on mud. The '72 Preakness, it was a rainy day and the track was slop. It used to be on RUclips but I can't seem to find it now. Big Red, he could run on anything. Grass, dirt, wet, dry - he adapted to conditions.
After watching a healthy, filling out Big Red finish his shortened career with two utterly dominant turf wins against the best in the land, I am convinced that he would have been unbeatable. As great as Forego was-my favorite horse and one of the greatest weight carriers of all time, I don't think he could have beaten Big Red. Here he is beating a damned good horse in Riva while barely breaking a sweat. Citation, Kelso, Fager, Slew, Affirmed, The Bid, American Pharaoh, Cigar, John Henry, all superb horses; however, I would go with Secretariat as the best of the best.
@@ratso4443 Quite true. But Forego in May 1973 was still maturing, and was not the monster he would become at 4-7. He was good enough at 3, though, that he tied with Sham for 2nd best 3-yr-old male in the country. After the Derby, Sherill Ward was not willing to try him again against Secretariat. I suspect Ward would have reevalauated that decision if Secretariat had been racing in 1974, when both horses were 4.
@@ratso4443 Indeed; however, he was quite immature and yet to be gelded, a procedure which altered his demeanor and made him eminently rate-able. Forego won championships from 7F to 2-miles, carrying as much as 138 pounds, an utterly remarkable feat for the ages.
@@marysueeasteregg Forego was great as a 4 year old. Didn't break so many (any?) track records as Secretariat routinely did as a 3y.o. though. Would have been some great races. However I think tough for Forego as his preferred style was to close late and run down tired opposition in the stretch, but Secretariat (when fit) never tired in the stretch, far from it.
I'm so glad Ronnie didn't use it. I know it's done, and I don't like it, but our gorgeous, magnificent tremendous machine didn't need it. It would have been insulting. Ronnie just hung on, and let his beautiful Secretariat fly in his own way, with jet-propelled wings on his feet. He was our horse. Technically he belonged to the lovely Penny. But he belonged all of us, the people. RIP Big Red. I miss and love you..We all miss and love you.
@@annbolyn4910 Agreed, unlike the merciless Pincay with poor Sham. Sham is my favorite horse besides Red, they were cousins after all. RIP to both legends.
@Michael Miner Not sure who you mean by "they." Chenery would have liked to have raced him at 4, as she did with Riva Ridge. But her father's death early in 1973 left her with huge estate taxes to pay on Meadow Stable, and she was forced to syndicate both Secretariat and Riva Ridge. (If Christopher Chenery had died much earlier, or if Riva Ridge had not been so successful himself, she likely would have had to sell Secretariat. As it was, she had to liquidate a fair amount of her father's bloodstock, in addition to syndicating the two star colts.) The syndicate price for Secretariat was a then-record 6.08 million dollars, and like every stallion syndicate contract of which I am aware, the horse was required to be retired at the end of that year, though Chenery continued to control the remainder of his racing career.
@@marysueeasteregg Nothing is guaranteed in horse racing, maybe Forego crushes Secretariat at 4 We should be grateful we got to see what we did, Secretariat could have easily been retired after the Belmont
That’s ridiculous thinking any horse would crush big red. He did things as a 3 year old that are unbelievable!!! As a 4 year old if he was healthy would have been just unfair
He would have lost to older horses just like he did against Onion and Prove Out. Of course, he would have won some but he would not have dominated like he did the weak crop of 3-yos he faced. That's obvious.
@@JoeKoOhNo then why do experts agree he is the greatest. I mean dude you are just hating. There’s not even a close second. That’s a fact. Let’s see forego and sham where in that field. Facts are facts. He holds the most unbreakable record in sports. Oh yeah and that was hand ridden dumb ass!!!
This 1973 Marlboro Cup is one of my all-time favorite races because stable mates Secretariat and Riva Ridge finish way out in front, 1st and 2nd. Moreover, Secretariat's winning time was 1min 45 and 2/5sec, a world record for the nine furlong (1 and 1/8 miles) distance.
Hey Mikey. What we all know is you are an alcoholic and druggie. That kick in the head from Big Red really messed you up. You're too stupid to acknowledge that big Red was anatomically superior to every other horse.- not just in 1973 but from now all the way back.
Secretariat was anatomically superior to EVERY other horse? Really? Was Secretariat "anatomically" capable of winning 27 races at ages 2-3 the way Citation did? Did he have the "anatomy" for that? After all, Secretariat only won 16 times. Alternatively, is it unlikely that Secretariat was good enough, sound enough, and tough enough to win 27 times at ages 2-3? It seems he lacked the kind of "anatomy" required to win even 20 races.
How can you possibly know it was an "easy" 1:45 and 2/5? You don't know that. Turcotte was pushing Secretariat. It isn't like he had the brakes on or was easing up on him. Secretariat was "ridden out". You don't know what he "could have" done.
trf12567 I do not want to knock Citation who I personally rank in my top 5, but it's funny that you posted the Triple Crown time differences with Secretariat and Citation because I did the same thing in another thread some time ago. Citation's greatest work as far as time goes was during a period in his five year old season out at Golden Gate fields. Other than that, his times don't compare to Secretariat. Secretariat never had a chance to prove what he can do as an older horse, and it's been documented that the peak age for a racehorse is about 4 and a half years old.
Kennedy Road was a Queen's Plate winner in Canada in 1971 and accompanied Secretariat down the backstretch before being left behind in the latter's final race at Woodbine.
Can you imagine Penny Chenery's thrill with this first and second place sweep by her two Meadow Stable babies? She must have been walking on air! People seem to have forgotten about Riva Ridge. He wasn't glamorous, but he got the job done and, in a fiscal sense, paved the way for the amazing Secretariat. Riva's Triple Crown miss occurred when he lost the 1972 Preakness, the shortest of the three races. He came back to win the Belmont three weeks later. These two winners left the thoroughbred racing world such wonderful memories.
Melanie Hamilton I didnt know that Riva Ridge was her.horse! Wow,.two great.horses, what if he had won the Triple Crown? My goodness, there.still will never be another Srcretariat, I get chills whenever.I see.his races still!
@@reginacollins6880 They mated Riva to Secretariats mother, Something Royal so...does that make Riva Ridge Secretariats step dad?? lol! Also, Sham was a cousin to Secretariat as their moms were half sisters, both having Princequillo as their sire and he passed on his endurance. Apparently as far as Red and Sham were concerned, that Bold Ruler blood made the difference for speed.
Riva Ridge didn’t run well on sloppy tracks, but he was a very good horse for sure! I seen in a interview with Penny she was just hoping Secretariat wouldn’t embarrass Riva Ridge by running away with the race, RR had nothing to be embarrassed about in the race it was a pretty darn good showing!
@@johnwalsh3215 She shouldn't have been. 99.99% of owners/trainers/jockeys would kill for a horse like Riva Ridge. Nor that there is any shame losing to one of the two greatest horses of all time, who set a world record in the process.
The Marlboro and Canadian International had two things in common, they were both fields of mature, stallions and geldings, who were established champion horses in their prime and as a 3 year old colt, he trounced them all. It would have been something special to see him run as a mature horse.
❤ IT WAS ALWAYS SOMETHING SPECIAL TO GET TO SEE SECRETARIAT RUN . HE STILL ENCOURAGES ME TO THIS DAY....EVERYTIME I GET TO WATCH AN EPIC RACE LIKE THIS ONE.....I'M STILL IN AWE OF HOW GOD MADE SECRETARIAT SIMPLY THE BEST OF THE BEST.
Yes. Secretariat’s retirement at age 3 feels tragic. Here was an athlete who loved to TRAIN & loved to COMPETE. That was all taken away from him in a snap of the fingers. It must have felt so cruel to him!! He had a lovely large paddock all to himself to run around in during his retirement, but…
❤ HOW SECRETARIAT WOULD BE IN THE BACK OF A RACE...OR NEAR LAST....THEN TURN ON HIS TURBO POWER AND BEGIN TO MOVE "LIKE A TREMENDOUS MACHINE"...AND THIS RACE JUST SHOWED US ALL ONE MORE TIME THAT HE WAS MADE KING OF ALL RACE HORSES. HE WOULD OF PUT ALOT MORE DISTANCE BETWEEN HIS SELF AND THE REST OF THE HORSES IF HE HAD ANOTHER 1/4 TH A MILE. STILL HE WAS SIMPLY THE BEST. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS EPIC SECRETARIAT HORSE RACE.R.I.P.= RACE IN PEACE.....GOD BLESS ALL HORSE RACING FANS. LOVE AND............ PR❤YERS.
The length stride is just absurd - a horse who knew he could catch up with any horse, he didn't start with full power and sprint unlike every other one, he preserved his energy in the early meters of the race and slowly began to put on force with his wide strides and than started to surpass the opponents one by one, he had the ability to run each quarter of the race faster than the previous one, no other horse could do that, once he surpassed you there's no catching him again and you can be sure about this. He was unbelievable.
Ken Henderson Yes he most likely would have. Penny Chenery really loved Riva, he had a special place in her heart. He saved the farm not Secretariat as the Disney movie portrayed.
When Secretariat died they did an autopsy and found his heart weighed 22 pounds. An average horses heart weighs 8-9 pounds. My favorite horse of all time.
❤ I KNEW HE HAD ALOT OF HEART. GOD MADE HIM EXTRA SPECIAL.....SO PEOPLE COULD BE IN "AWE ". NO OTHER HORSE HAS BEEN ABLE TO BEAT HIM. SO GLAD WE GOT TO HAVE HIM AS LONG AS WE DID. GOD BLESS . LOVE AND PR❤YERS.
After the KD, winning and losing almost felt secondary in a Secretariat race; if he was right, everyone knew he would win, so he raced against the clock and track records. This fact alone is what made him so unique, and different from other champions. To me, the saddest thing that ever happened in horse racing was not seeing what the greatest thoroughbred racehorse in North American history would've been capable of, had he been allowed to race as a 4-year-old.
It’s so awesome to watch that horse repeatedly come from behind to win. Watch how beautifully he runs in the stretch. The other jockeys must be thinking AGAIN? DAMMIT !
I'm so glad Ronnie didn't use the whip. I know it's done, and I don't like it, but our gorgeous, magnificent tremendous machine didn't need it.xIt would have been insulting. Ronnie just hung on, and let his beautiful Secretariat fly in his own way, with jet-propelled wings on his feet. He was our horse. Technically he belonged to the lovely Penny. But he belonged all of us, the people. RIP Big Red. I miss and love you..We all miss and love you.uh
It instructive to me to watch Secretariat's turnover rate as he moves up at the back stretch and he begins to move up. He is striding longer and turing over slower than the other horses. Once he gets even with Riva Ridge he ups it to RR rate and glides on by. According to Turcott he was not pushing it either. Call it as you like but he had special gifts. Key to the Mint dominated as a two year old -Eclipse. Aninhilatl"Em Travers winner. Cougar II HOF. Riva Ridge HOF. Kennedy Road Canadian Horse of the year. All older horses.
+jimellenw Five champions, including Secretariat, were entered in this race. It was in my view the best field ever assembled. Secretariat's easy win further proves he was unique, a true genetic freak.
I think Secretariat's revs are still slightly less than Riva Ridge in the straight. Must have been bizarre for that great horse - who was used to winning more of often than not - to see it work harder revs than the horse in front yet still concede ground with every stride.
Turcotte--great rider. Love the way he was rubbing Secretariat's neck gently with his right hand as they were winning the race. One could almost feel the affection he had for that horse. It wasn't only about the $$.
Riva Ridge was a stablemate of Secretariat and was a great horse in his own right. Rest assured, these two horses were familiar with each other with Riva knowing who the alpha was. He was in a no win position, but gave it his best shot nonetheles. Great race and finish by two beautiful and dominate horses of their day.
I love that he mentioned that the entry from Meadow Stable was running 1-2. The amusement park in Virginia near the Meadow is called "King's Dominion." They used to have a safari park there. Now the King we remember at King's Dominion is Secretariat.
Nice to see Secretariat beat the field including Riva Ridge and Onion, who handed Secretariat one of his rare losses after boxing him in. This is the true greatness of Secretariat on display in this race.
Maybe it's just me, but doesn't Secretariat look like an offensive lineman blocking for the running back, Riva Ridge, as they round the corner for home, his hulking form preventing the advance of any competitors just as the announcer declares "the entry is running 1-2 for the Meadow Stable!" Then with what appears to be a puff of smoke, Big Red turns on the afterburners as Riva falls into place at second, followed by a bunch of horses who look like they don't know quite what hit them. An epic moment that had to happen, and I'm glad Penny allowed it to.
How many stables can boast two horses in two years winning 5 out of 6 Triple Crown races ? Riva Ridge and Secretariat. What a shame Mr.&Mrs. Cheney didn't live to see it.
Every single time Secretariat didn't win, he would set a record in his next race. That's a fact. :) Eddie Maple was on Riva Ridge and he commented that "I looked over and saw that big red head and those blue and white blinkers and I thought, 'What ya gonna do?' There's nothin' ya can do." :)
Mike Rodriguez Needed a rabbit? That's absurd. I don't have time to debate the issue due to an appointment. Perhaps someone else will address it. By the way, it's Riva Ridge, not Rival. Maybe you could go to the Secretariat website and point that out to them. They're great about responding to messages.
oh my the comments here....2 words bull shit!! Ruffian was without a doubt incredible BEST filly EVER and huge at 17 hands was a sprinter IMO 1-1 5/8m was secretariats specialty! not only could he sprint and keep pace with 22second quarter mile starts but he then could pull into a fifth gear at the end and pull away with stamina to spare when others start to fade. Thats what made him special!! Ruffian put down a 2:27 at 1 1/2 mile race, 3 seconds behind sec best and 2 seconds at his worst. Ruffian and secretariat were pretty much equal in times up to 1 1/8 where he then proved his superiority!
Actually, your claim that "every single time Secretariat didn't win, he would set a record in his next race" is incorrect. The only instance where Secretariat set a world record after a loss occurred following his loss in the Whitney. Secretariat's 4 other losses were not, in fact, followed by a world record performances in his next races.
Clearly the 1 and 2 horses of the era. Love the no shtick call of Dave Johnson as opposed to his later triple crown cliche “ Down the stretch they come”.
met both horses @ claiborne ummm .bout '78 - '79. Nijinsky 11 was there. Tom rolfe, coastal. a few more Riva was a big horse. trotted over dude says stick out ur tongue boy n a long green tongue came out n then the dude says show em can still run boy n off he went . . . after the dude took our family around he called Secretariat n he came by head n neck above the fence n him eye ballin. I asked the dude if he'd git em closer he said he couldn't guarantee what a crazy horse would. but act like ur takin his picture. so we pantomimed the camera thing n he was out about 40 ft posing 4 us. well got ready 2 leave n 4 tour buses of oriental got the same tour.
Secretariat was only 80% at best for this race. Secretariat pulled up a furlong in a 1 1/4 in 157 4/5 seconds. You image if he ran at Santa Anita race track? Secretariat would run 156 3/5 seconds on that track.
You need to stop trolling on Secretariat videos. Don't you understand Man O War does not have any memorable performances. Man O War beat a ready for the grave Sir Barton and caring weight against G3 rated horses. Man O War never did anything that special.
+SoHills VetTech -Yep-ancient history. Glad you showed it. Now looking at this years potential runners to see who Secretariat can humiliate this year. First nominations closed Jan.16th. Nomination fee $600. Second nominations end March 21. Fee $6,000
What I see is he could have run significantly faster. By far the best horse. It looks like he could do whatever he wants. Win by three or won by twenty. Just wins.
@ Patrick Welch I had the good fortune, of being at the track that day, to watch this race in person. While I thought Secretariat, was the best horse in the race, it wasn't by much because of the great field of older horses, he was facing, which included 4 eclipse award winners. Also, Secretariat was just recovering from a nasty virus, which IMO cost him the Whitney Stakes, about 4 weeks earlier. The concensus was, that he was at about 80% for this race. No matter, he blew by these great older horses, including his stable mate Riva Ridge, like they were tied to a fire hydrant. He also did so in world record time for 1 1 1/8th miles. 1:45 2/5ths. I never got to see Secretariat run in the Belmont Stakes, in person, although I was scheduled to go. I watched it live on TV. If that was Secretariats greatest performance, and that would be hard to argue against, this was his 2nd best, IMO.
He didn't look like he was spent; I don't know how much faster he could have gone but I'm pretty sure he had enough gas in the tank that he could've tied or broken Spectacular Bid's WR of 1:57 4/5 for a mile and a quarter. He only needed a 12 2/5 furlong to tie it and, the way he was running, I think he had it in him.
@@williampercy7199 Would've tied the Bid's record. And he was a three-year-old. If he'd run as a four-year-old, with another year of growth and training, he'd have put the records for every distance from a mile to a mile and a half out of reach forever.
Lol. On a different racing vid, someone claimed that Secretariat ran against mostly underachieving horses, none of whom ever set a track record. I am preparing my ammunition. Of Secretariat's competitors *in this race alone*: Riva Ridge: 2 track records, 1 world record Cougar II : track record, turf course record, American turf record Key to the Mint: equaled track record Kennedy Road: track record Onion: track record And of course, these horses own 4 U.S. championship titles and 5 Canadian championship titles. This does not count Sham, Linda's Chief, Tentam or FOREGO.
I read an interview with Penny Chenery Tweedy's daughter. She said her mother respected and admired Secretariat, but that she loved Riva Ridge. Riva Ridge apparently was a real sweetie pie and Mrs. Tweedy just loved him.
Laurin questioned Turcotte's decision to ride Secretariat rather than stablemate Riva Ridge. Maybe Laurin figured a great four-year-old would beat a great three-year-old? (As would happen in a few years with Seattle Slew vs. Affirmed and Affirmed vs. Spectacular Bid.)
I had not seen this race in quite sometime. Onion had defeated Secretariat in the Whitney. But the Secretariat team took no chances here. Using the 72 Kentucky Derby winner, Riva Ridge as a rabbit to burn onion out early. Then put in no effort in the stretch.so his stablemate would win. Secretariat lost his next race as well, without the rabbit effect. Phone Out kicked his butt. Definitely not in the same league as other champions. Struggled bad in open company.
Do not understand why The Great Cougar 2nd was kept so far behind, its mind boggling. Has to be the worst jockey performance I've ever seen in my life time (pat day on Easy Goer in Preakness 2nd). Incredible. Incredulous. Around the far turn Cougar 2nd was coming like a freight train then on the top of the stretch for some unknown reason the jockey chooses to take the middle lane where Cougar 2nd is seriously impeded instead of taking the outside. Obviously, Cougar 2nd would have won with a better ride.
+rodd7 You are a very foolish man-Cougar couldn`t beat Secretariat with a 20 length head start. Did I say 20? I should have said 31. Does that number ring a bell in your dense head? You better go watch the Belmont race again.
+Susan Nunes -That dummy kinda forgot the outside is slower and it`s the rail that gives them the edge. Secretariat`s specialty was coming from behind and on the outside which is extremely difficult.
Easy Goer was Being Compared to Secretariat and for Legit Reasons...Unfortunately Easy Goer had a Rider that was Spoiled Aboard him and Had No Respect for his Rival (Sunday Silence) or Any other Field and it Cost him some Big Races that He Certainly Should have Won
Secretariat wasn't even fully fit in this rae. He'd barely recovered fron the fever which caused him the run 2nd in the Whitney. All his training splits leading up this race were disastrous by his extremely high standards, except the very last training session.
9Ballr ... Secretariat lost 2 races due to bad health...he stepped on a nail, and had an abscessed tooth in another race.. he had a cold in his last race and still won by 6 or 7 lengths.
Riva Ridge would beat any horse who ever lived on a fast track The Marlboro was run on a wet track. The track condition was rated good on the tote board but the chart of the race says "fast" which it was not. There was a lot of water on it.
"In the 10, maybe 15 minutes it took to take that walk, Charlie must have wiped Secretariat’s ass at least nine or ten times," Nack said. "Diarrhea was running down his back legs. I asked Eddie, ‘Is he sick? Did he eat something?’ Eddie said, ‘Naw, he’s just nervous.’ ‘Nervous?’ I said. ‘What the hell’s he got to be nervous about?’ " In fact, Secretariat had been talking to his people. Prior to the Whitney he worked too fast, then too slow. Jockey Ron Turcotte voiced his concerns to trainer Lucien Laurin, but the show went on. There was great pressure to run, coming not only from track management but also a TV network tied to a four-race series in New York, with Secretariat as the star, and from the thousands of fans who were making a pilgrimage to Saratoga just to see the colt in the flesh. "I was learning then that anything could happen in horse racing," said Penny Chenery, Secretariat’s owner. "We knew he had a low-grade infection. But we decided he was strong enough to win anyway, and we were wrong. "I try not to brood about it. It was a bad result, but it did make the Marlboro much more important."
+SoHills VetTech That is correct, sir. Here is the link. news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1957&dat=19930725&id=3XohAAAAIBAJ&sjid=F4oFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3150,5646712&hl=en Or...just google...Secretariat Whitney Stakes Google. Great article, especially his training run 8 days before the Whitney, in the slop, and under 132-133 pounds using an exercise saddle, which was common for his training. The best info I have found to date about what happened at the Whitney.
+bbmtge wow, thanks so much!!! Super interesting article. I've heard he trained at 132 but never had black and white confirmation of that!! Thank u again! any other interesting facts or articles u know of about his races, in particular the wood or Woodward??
cs.bloodhorse.com/blogs/horse-racing-steve-haskin/archive/2008/08/04/The-Unbeatable-Horse.aspx www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/ask-ray-secretariat-and-the-travers/ Couple of excellent articles, including training stats.
Seeing these old races from my childhood brings me to tears,there will never be another "Big Red Machine",Secretariat.
I’ve been watching him since I was 13 years old in 1973 and all I can ever do is drop my jaw in disbelief, utter “Jesus” or cry. I’ve never, ever seen anything like that horse across the entire universe of possible subjects available for humans to think about. He was that f-ing stupefying.
BIG RED!!!!!! Thanks for the memories. I was 16 when he started the Triple Crown. I can't tell you how many times I've watched his replays - thank GOD we have RUclips!!
Perhaps the greatest field ever assembled for one race. Five champions, including Secretariat, were in this race.
+sl7293 Dr Fager is my second favorite horse behind Secretariat. Those were some good races and this is the reasoning I have Said with American Pharaoh, no challengers on the front in The Preakness, Belmont, and BCC.. If Hedevar wasn't entered in two of those races, Damascus never beats Dr. Fager. Any average horse with no pressure on the front end will win most times, let a lone a top horse like Dr Fager.
+sl7293 Nope. The Marlboro was the best field EVER. Period. BTW, nobody knowledgeable about horse racing takes the Blood Horse's poll seriously because of one idiot on the panel of 7 who ranked Secretariat 14th. That was the only reason Man O' War finished at the top. That is mindboggling stupid. There has never before or since been a field with five champions in a single race. Secretariat made the rest look like mediocrities because he was so much the better. No slam on Dr. Fager, Buckpasser, and Damascus, all of whom I remember as a young person in the 1960s. I was a big fan of Damascus in his Triple Crown races, and I wished I was able to have seen him at Claiborne Farm when I visited there in 1989. He was at the Marchmont section of the farm, along with Conquistador Cielo and Spectacular Bid.
+key West SUNSET You have to remember that almost ALL of the TC winners, with the possible exception of Affirmed, were much the best of the three-year-old crop. That is one of the three ways a horse wins the TC. The other two are luck, such as avoiding injury (career-ending injuries cost Tim Tam and Charismatic the TC), and a great jockey (we ALL know, or should know, what actually cost Spectacular Bid his being denied the TC in 1979).
+Susan Nunes The 1967 Woodward featured 3 horses who are ranked among the top 20 horses of the 20th century. That is the only time in history that three horses of such a high caliber raced against one another. It is for that reason that people often claim that this was the greatest field ever assembled. By contrast the 1973 Marlboro featured only one horse ranked among the top 20 horses of the 20th century.
al7293+ I have to agree the 1967 Woodward field was even stronger. Still, the inaugural Marlboro Cup remains easily one of the strongest fields ever assembled in North America (and I dare say elsewhere), with three 3 U.S. Hall of Fame horses, all of whom made Blood-Horse's top 100 N. American horses of the 20th century, plus the Canadian Hall of Famer Kennedy Road, and another champion. (I'm American, but the U.S.-centrism of Blood-Horse not specifying "North American" for that list grates on me.)
Once again, Secretariat goes from a distant 5th to winning without a whip. Amazing athlete and certainly the greatest racehorse of ALL time.
Greatest race horse in 1973 by a mile!
Well zenyatta went from a distant lady every race and won every race but one andvonly lost because she didn't see him till to late because if she'd seen him he wouldn't have beat her either because when she did see him she kicked into a 5th gear and almost caught him too.zennyatta the best horse to ever step foot on the track period. Iv followed horse racing my whole life and she was better than cigar and DR. FAGER all the rest Dr. FAGER was the second best horse ever if you never seem him watch his races
@@MikeSmith-cn6ub I've followed horse racing all my life and, IMO, Secretariat is the greatest ever by a long shot!
@@garythompson8629 maybe the best 3 year old in 73 ill giv you that
@Mike Smith Secretariat was retired at only 3 years old. If you have really followed horse racing "your whole life," you know 3 years is like a teenager for horses. They don't mature until 4 or 5 like Forego. If Secretariat had been allowed to race until he was 6, you could not count high enough all the wins and records he would have
Secretariat, the G.O.A.T.....we may never see another like him.
We did american Pharoah
@@user-um7uq3fe3u Maybe in your alternate reality.
@@phillymanpete right on. I mean, geez.
SECRETARIART IN THE LAST 1/4 MILE....JUST LIKE A FREIGHT TRAIN.....NEVER AGAIN WILL WE SEE SUCH A MONSTER AS HE ON A RACE TRACK.....GOD BLESS...R.I.P. CHAMP
I'm so glad Ronnie didn't use the whip. I
know it's done, and I don't like it, but our gorgeous, magnificent tremendous machine didn't need it. It would have been insulting. Ronnie just hung on, and let his beautiful Secretariat fly in his own way, with jet-propelled wings on his feet. He was our horse. Technically he belonged to the lovely Penny. But he belonged all of us, the people. RIP Big Red. I miss and love you. We all miss and love you.
Not in 500 hundred Years
@@annbolyn4910.,,,..,.😅
What most people don’t realize when they watch this race or the Canadian International is that Secretariat is racing against fully mature horses that were champions in their own right (Riva Ridge won the Derby and Belmont, Kennedy Road was a Canadian Champion 3 years in a row and won several races in the US). All of these other horses are at least 4 years old, Secretariat was still a colt and wasn’t full grown. It would have been amazing to see him run as a 4 year old.
Of course I’m glad that secretariat won. He’s my angel, my second angel is Riva Ridge. And I’m so glad that he was right behind him. Meadow stable had two diamonds.
Wide the whole race and under a hand ride the whole way. And sets a world record. Unbelievable.
dan kinsler truly remarkable wow
dan kinsler .. I never saw jockey use whip in any of his races... I am 71 years old and bet the horse in the 70's
And what makes it more unbelievable is that he had the viral infection the previous month which clearly caused his dull performance in the Whitney, and made him miss the Travers. I read somewhere that the viral infection would have shut most other horses down for the year. Instead, he comes back and does this in his first race back.
Good point
On the outside the whole race and still sets a world record.
@@renecordova6349 he actually did in the stretch of the Kentucky derby
He made it look easy. Blessed! The G.O.A.T. Mind boggling to know that people saw the greatest of all time race and to know he was the greatest
Records that will never be broken! Just WOW and we got to see it live!
never get tired of watching the greatest perform, how easy must it have been to work with a horse that just loved to run, no encouraging ever needed, his move at the Preakness still sends shivers down my spine...
Riva Ridge with a winning performance most any other day. A great horse completely overshadowed by his stablemate.
I think the only reason Riva Ridge didn't win the Triple Crown is because he didn't run well on mud. The '72 Preakness, it was a rainy day and the track was slop. It used to be on RUclips but I can't seem to find it now.
Big Red, he could run on anything. Grass, dirt, wet, dry - he adapted to conditions.
After watching a healthy, filling out Big Red finish his shortened career with two utterly dominant turf wins against the best in the land, I am convinced that he would have been unbeatable. As great as Forego was-my favorite horse and one of the greatest weight carriers of all time, I don't think he could have beaten Big Red. Here he is beating a damned good horse in Riva while barely breaking a sweat. Citation, Kelso, Fager, Slew, Affirmed, The Bid, American Pharaoh, Cigar, John Henry, all superb horses; however, I would go with Secretariat as the best of the best.
Forego was in the 1973 Derby field.
@@ratso4443 Quite true. But Forego in May 1973 was still maturing, and was not the monster he would become at 4-7.
He was good enough at 3, though, that he tied with Sham for 2nd best 3-yr-old male in the country. After the Derby, Sherill Ward was not willing to try him again against Secretariat. I suspect Ward would have reevalauated that decision if Secretariat had been racing in 1974, when both horses were 4.
@@ratso4443 Indeed; however, he was quite immature and yet to be gelded, a procedure which altered his demeanor and made him eminently rate-able. Forego won championships from 7F to 2-miles, carrying as much as 138 pounds, an utterly remarkable feat for the ages.
@@marysueeasteregg Forego was great as a 4 year old. Didn't break so many (any?) track records as Secretariat routinely did as a 3y.o. though. Would have been some great races. However I think tough for Forego as his preferred style was to close late and run down tired opposition in the stretch, but Secretariat (when fit) never tired in the stretch, far from it.
And you're not alone!!!
No whip needed. A true beast.
I'm so glad Ronnie didn't use it. I
know it's done, and I don't like it, but our gorgeous, magnificent tremendous machine didn't need it. It would have been insulting. Ronnie just hung on, and let his beautiful Secretariat fly in his own way, with jet-propelled wings on his feet. He was our horse. Technically he belonged to the lovely Penny. But he belonged all of us, the people. RIP Big Red. I miss and love you..We all miss and love you.
@@annbolyn4910 Agreed, unlike the merciless Pincay with poor Sham. Sham is my favorite horse besides Red, they were cousins after all. RIP to both legends.
Secretariat was that great as a 3 year old.. imagine if he would have run as a 4 or 5 year old..best of all time by a mile
@Michael Miner Not sure who you mean by "they." Chenery would have liked to have raced him at 4, as she did with Riva Ridge. But her father's death early in 1973 left her with huge estate taxes to pay on Meadow Stable, and she was forced to syndicate both Secretariat and Riva Ridge. (If Christopher Chenery had died much earlier, or if Riva Ridge had not been so successful himself, she likely would have had to sell Secretariat. As it was, she had to liquidate a fair amount of her father's bloodstock, in addition to syndicating the two star colts.) The syndicate price for Secretariat was a then-record 6.08 million dollars, and like every stallion syndicate contract of which I am aware, the horse was required to be retired at the end of that year, though Chenery continued to control the remainder of his racing career.
@@marysueeasteregg Nothing is guaranteed in horse racing, maybe Forego crushes Secretariat at 4
We should be grateful we got to see what we did, Secretariat could have easily been retired after the Belmont
That’s ridiculous thinking any horse would crush big red. He did things as a 3 year old that are unbelievable!!! As a 4 year old if he was healthy would have been just unfair
He would have lost to older horses just like he did against Onion and Prove Out. Of course, he would have won some but he would not have dominated like he did the weak crop of 3-yos he faced. That's obvious.
@@JoeKoOhNo then why do experts agree he is the greatest. I mean dude you are just hating. There’s not even a close second. That’s a fact. Let’s see forego and sham where in that field. Facts are facts. He holds the most unbreakable record in sports. Oh yeah and that was hand ridden dumb ass!!!
This 1973 Marlboro Cup is one of my all-time favorite races because stable mates Secretariat and Riva Ridge finish way out in front, 1st and 2nd. Moreover, Secretariat's winning time was 1min 45 and 2/5sec, a world record for the nine furlong (1 and 1/8 miles) distance.
Hey Mikey. What we all know is you are an alcoholic and druggie. That kick in the head from Big Red really messed you up. You're too stupid to acknowledge that big Red was anatomically superior to every other horse.- not just in 1973 but from now all the way back.
Secretariat was anatomically superior to EVERY other horse? Really? Was Secretariat "anatomically" capable of winning 27 races at ages 2-3 the way Citation did? Did he have the "anatomy" for that? After all, Secretariat only won 16 times. Alternatively, is it unlikely that Secretariat was good enough, sound enough, and tough enough to win 27 times at ages 2-3? It seems he lacked the kind of "anatomy" required to win even 20 races.
it was an easy 145 and 2/5..he could have done 145 flat if he needed to..
How can you possibly know it was an "easy" 1:45 and 2/5? You don't know that. Turcotte was pushing Secretariat. It isn't like he had the brakes on or was easing up on him. Secretariat was "ridden out". You don't know what he "could have" done.
trf12567 I do not want to knock Citation who I personally rank in my top 5, but it's funny that you posted the Triple Crown time differences with Secretariat and Citation because I did the same thing in another thread some time ago. Citation's greatest work as far as time goes was during a period in his five year old season out at Golden Gate fields. Other than that, his times don't compare to Secretariat. Secretariat never had a chance to prove what he can do as an older horse, and it's been documented that the peak age for a racehorse is about 4 and a half years old.
Kennedy Road was a Queen's Plate winner in Canada in 1971 and accompanied Secretariat down the backstretch before being left behind in the latter's final race at Woodbine.
WE MISS ANDLOVE, LOVE SECRETARIAT
All the Triple Crown winners were SPECIAL but SECRETARIAT just LOVED TO RUN. G O A T !!!! ☝☝☝
Can you imagine Penny Chenery's thrill with this first and second place sweep by her two Meadow Stable babies? She must have been walking on air! People seem to have forgotten about Riva Ridge. He wasn't glamorous, but he got the job done and, in a fiscal sense, paved the way for the amazing Secretariat. Riva's Triple Crown miss occurred when he lost the 1972 Preakness, the shortest of the three races. He came back to win the Belmont three weeks later. These two winners left the thoroughbred racing world such wonderful memories.
Melanie Hamilton I didnt know that Riva Ridge was her.horse! Wow,.two great.horses, what if he had won the Triple Crown? My goodness, there.still will never be another Srcretariat, I get chills whenever.I see.his races still!
@@reginacollins6880 They mated Riva to Secretariats mother, Something Royal so...does that make Riva Ridge Secretariats step dad?? lol! Also, Sham was a cousin to Secretariat as their moms were half sisters, both having Princequillo as their sire and he passed on his endurance. Apparently as far as Red and Sham were concerned, that Bold Ruler blood made the difference for speed.
@@reginacollins6880 Had the Preakness been dry in 1972......who knows?
Riva Ridge didn’t run well on sloppy tracks, but he was a very good horse for sure! I seen in a interview with Penny she was just hoping Secretariat wouldn’t embarrass Riva Ridge by running away with the race, RR had nothing to be embarrassed about in the race it was a pretty darn good showing!
@@johnwalsh3215 She shouldn't have been. 99.99% of owners/trainers/jockeys would kill for a horse like Riva Ridge. Nor that there is any shame losing to one of the two greatest horses of all time, who set a world record in the process.
The Marlboro and Canadian International had two things in common, they were both fields of mature, stallions and geldings, who were established champion horses in their prime and as a 3 year old colt, he trounced them all. It would have been something special to see him run as a mature horse.
❤ IT WAS ALWAYS SOMETHING SPECIAL TO GET TO SEE SECRETARIAT RUN . HE STILL ENCOURAGES ME TO THIS DAY....EVERYTIME I GET TO WATCH AN EPIC RACE LIKE THIS ONE.....I'M STILL IN AWE OF HOW GOD MADE SECRETARIAT SIMPLY THE BEST OF THE BEST.
Yes. Secretariat’s retirement at age 3 feels tragic. Here was an athlete who loved to TRAIN & loved to COMPETE. That was all taken away from him in a snap of the fingers. It must have felt so cruel to him!! He had a lovely large paddock all to himself to run around in during his retirement, but…
Wasn’t the Man o’ War Stakes also composed of 3-yr-olds & older stallions and geldings?
The worst words a jockey in the lead could ever wish to hear: "Secretariat is on the outside and challenging".
it's amazing to see secretariat and riva ridge racing...give credit to riva ridge for saving meadow stable.
Love watching them run around that turn... matching strides ..
❤ HOW SECRETARIAT WOULD BE IN THE BACK OF A RACE...OR NEAR LAST....THEN TURN ON HIS TURBO POWER AND BEGIN TO MOVE "LIKE A TREMENDOUS MACHINE"...AND THIS RACE JUST SHOWED US ALL ONE MORE TIME THAT HE WAS MADE KING OF ALL RACE HORSES. HE WOULD OF PUT ALOT MORE DISTANCE BETWEEN HIS SELF AND THE REST OF THE HORSES IF HE HAD ANOTHER 1/4 TH A MILE. STILL HE WAS SIMPLY THE BEST. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS EPIC SECRETARIAT HORSE RACE.R.I.P.= RACE IN PEACE.....GOD BLESS ALL HORSE RACING FANS. LOVE AND............
PR❤YERS.
Greatest athlete in the history of the world!
The length stride is just absurd - a horse who knew he could catch up with any horse, he didn't start with full power and sprint unlike every other one, he preserved his energy in the early meters of the race and slowly began to put on force with his wide strides and than started to surpass the opponents one by one, he had the ability to run each quarter of the race faster than the previous one, no other horse could do that, once he surpassed you there's no catching him again and you can be sure about this. He was unbelievable.
I always thought that Riva Ridge would have won the Triple Crown if it hadn't been raining in Baltimore during the Preakness.
Ken Henderson Yes he most likely would have. Penny Chenery really loved Riva, he had a special place in her heart. He saved the farm not Secretariat as the Disney movie portrayed.
Larry Staples your wrong! He won the Derby and the Belmont!!
Larry Staples No problem! But ‘73 everyone knows that’s Big Red’s year!
Larry Staples No worries. Glad we helped you find the right road. Be well.
Probably. He was a very fine horse.
He ran so easy here and in a awful position, sets a record to boot. Unbelievable
What can you say he beat the best of the best. THE IMMORTAL SECRETARIAT !
When Secretariat died they did an autopsy and found his heart weighed 22 pounds. An average horses heart weighs 8-9 pounds. My favorite horse of all time.
❤ I KNEW HE HAD ALOT OF HEART. GOD MADE HIM EXTRA SPECIAL.....SO PEOPLE COULD BE IN "AWE ". NO OTHER HORSE HAS BEEN ABLE TO BEAT HIM. SO GLAD WE GOT TO HAVE HIM AS LONG AS WE DID. GOD BLESS . LOVE AND PR❤YERS.
After the KD, winning and losing almost felt secondary in a Secretariat race; if he was right, everyone knew he would win, so he raced against the clock and track records. This fact alone is what made him so unique, and different from other champions. To me, the saddest thing that ever happened in horse racing was not seeing what the greatest thoroughbred racehorse in North American history would've been capable of, had he been allowed to race as a 4-year-old.
Cougar 2nd was a big time horse at Santa Anita... I never knew he was in a race with the GOAT!!
It’s so awesome to watch that horse repeatedly come from behind to win. Watch how beautifully he runs in the stretch. The other jockeys must be thinking AGAIN? DAMMIT !
I'm so glad Ronnie didn't use the whip. I
know it's done, and I don't like it, but our gorgeous, magnificent tremendous machine didn't need it.xIt would have been insulting. Ronnie just hung on, and let his beautiful Secretariat fly in his own way, with jet-propelled wings on his feet. He was our horse. Technically he belonged to the lovely Penny. But he belonged all of us, the people. RIP Big Red. I miss and love you..We all miss and love you.uh
It instructive to me to watch Secretariat's turnover rate as he moves up at the back stretch and he begins to move up. He is striding longer and turing over slower than the other horses. Once he gets even with Riva Ridge he ups it to RR rate and glides on by. According to Turcott he was not pushing it either.
Call it as you like but he had special gifts. Key to the Mint dominated as a two year old -Eclipse. Aninhilatl"Em Travers winner. Cougar II HOF. Riva Ridge HOF. Kennedy Road Canadian Horse of the year. All older horses.
+jimellenw Five champions, including Secretariat, were entered in this race. It was in my view the best field ever assembled. Secretariat's easy win further proves he was unique, a true genetic freak.
I think Secretariat's revs are still slightly less than Riva Ridge in the straight. Must have been bizarre for that great horse - who was used to winning more of often than not - to see it work harder revs than the horse in front yet still concede ground with every stride.
Turcotte--great rider. Love the way he was rubbing Secretariat's neck gently with his right hand as they were winning the race. One could almost feel the affection he had for that horse. It wasn't only about the $$.
@@sarenabarr6910. I noticed the hand rub, upon viewing the race twice.
Riva Ridge was a stablemate of Secretariat and was a great horse in his own right. Rest assured, these two horses were familiar with each other with Riva knowing who the alpha was. He was in a no win position, but gave it his best shot nonetheles. Great race and finish by two beautiful and dominate horses of their day.
Every horse he beat in this,race was a champion. No dogs in this,race.
"Here come secretariat..." Is permanent!!!🐎🐎🐎
Go watch the last race he ran and was then retired.
Big Red...so powerful and fast!!
"Big Red"
Gosh he ran by Riva Ridge so easily....
Exactly
Great call by Dave Johnson here.
I love that he mentioned that the entry from Meadow Stable was running 1-2.
The amusement park in Virginia near the Meadow is called "King's Dominion." They used to have a safari park there. Now the King we remember at King's Dominion is Secretariat.
No horse ran the home stretch like Secretariat.
I was there and I still have the race program.
Nice to see Secretariat beat the field including Riva Ridge and Onion, who handed Secretariat one of his rare losses after boxing him in. This is the true greatness of Secretariat on display in this race.
The prep races showed that to win takes a lot of pieces being put just so.
Maybe it's just me, but doesn't Secretariat look like an offensive lineman blocking for the running back, Riva Ridge, as they round the corner for home, his hulking form preventing the advance of any competitors just as the announcer declares "the entry is running 1-2 for the Meadow Stable!" Then with what appears to be a puff of smoke, Big Red turns on the afterburners as Riva falls into place at second, followed by a bunch of horses who look like they don't know quite what hit them. An epic moment that had to happen, and I'm glad Penny allowed it to.
How many stables can boast two horses in two years winning 5 out of 6 Triple Crown races ?
Riva Ridge and Secretariat.
What a shame Mr.&Mrs. Cheney didn't live to see it.
Lucien deserves a LOT of credit
If he was born in a different year, Riva Ridge would be Horse of the Year.
Every single time Secretariat didn't win, he would set a record in his next race. That's a fact. :) Eddie Maple was on Riva Ridge and he commented that "I looked over and saw that big red head and those blue and white blinkers and I thought, 'What ya gonna do?' There's nothin' ya can do." :)
Mike Rodriguez Needed a rabbit? That's absurd. I don't have time to debate the issue due to an appointment. Perhaps someone else will address it. By the way, it's Riva Ridge, not Rival. Maybe you could go to the Secretariat website and point that out to them. They're great about responding to messages.
oh my the comments here....2 words bull shit!!
Ruffian was without a doubt incredible BEST filly EVER and huge at 17 hands was a sprinter IMO 1-1 5/8m was secretariats specialty! not only could he sprint and keep pace with 22second quarter mile starts but he then could pull into a fifth gear at the end and pull away with stamina to spare when others start to fade. Thats what made him special!! Ruffian put down a 2:27 at 1 1/2 mile race, 3 seconds behind sec best and 2 seconds at his worst. Ruffian and secretariat were pretty much equal in times up to 1 1/8 where he then proved his superiority!
Actually, your claim that "every single time Secretariat didn't win, he would set a record in his next race" is incorrect. The only instance where Secretariat set a world record after a loss occurred following his loss in the Whitney. Secretariat's 4 other losses were not, in fact, followed by a world record performances in his next races.
I didn't say anything about a 'world' record. It could have been a track record or a stakes record.
Whatever. Get a life.
My late pops was there!!!
Have you ever seen a horse with better running motion?
Ghostzapper?
Clearly the 1 and 2 horses of the era. Love the no shtick call of Dave Johnson as opposed to his later triple crown cliche “ Down the stretch they come”.
I loved,,, Down the stretch they Come
You're so right. His 'down the stretch they come' and his phony enthusiasm calling the winner made me sick.
It was a world record at the time for that distance. Not sure if or when it was broken.
It was broken by Simply Majestic 15 years later in 1988.
❤ P.S. NEVER BROKEN :SECRETARIAT STILL HOLDS THAT RECORD TOO. GOD BLESS HIS BIG HEART. AND GOD BLESS ALL HORSE RACING FANS TOO. LOVE AND PR❤YERS.
Riva Ridge was a great horse....
met both horses @ claiborne ummm .bout '78 - '79. Nijinsky 11 was there. Tom rolfe, coastal. a few more Riva was a big horse. trotted over dude says stick out ur tongue boy n a long green tongue came out n then the dude says show em can still run boy n off he went . . . after the dude took our family around he called Secretariat n he came by head n neck above the fence n him eye ballin. I asked the dude if he'd git em closer he said he couldn't guarantee what a crazy horse would. but act like ur takin his picture. so we pantomimed the camera thing n he was out about 40 ft posing 4 us. well got ready 2 leave n 4 tour buses of oriental got the same tour.
Secretariat was only 80% at best for this race. Secretariat pulled up a furlong in a 1 1/4 in 157 4/5 seconds. You image if he ran at Santa Anita race track? Secretariat would run 156 3/5 seconds on that track.
You need to stop trolling on Secretariat videos. Don't you understand Man O War does not have any memorable performances. Man O War beat a ready for the grave Sir Barton and caring weight against G3 rated horses. Man O War never did anything that special.
Mike Rodriguez You`ve never seen a horse in your life!
Mike Rodriguez --Poor Onion-beat to hell with a whip
+Glen W. Ford check out this article news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1957&dat=19930725&id=3XohAAAAIBAJ&sjid=F4oFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3150,5646712&hl=en
+SoHills VetTech -Yep-ancient history. Glad you showed it. Now looking at this years potential runners to see who Secretariat can humiliate this year. First nominations closed Jan.16th. Nomination fee $600. Second nominations end March 21. Fee $6,000
What I see is he could have run significantly faster. By far the best horse. It looks like he could do whatever he wants. Win by three or won by twenty. Just wins.
@ Patrick Welch I had the good fortune, of being at the track that day, to watch this race in person. While I thought Secretariat, was the best horse in the race, it wasn't by much because of the great field of older horses, he was facing, which included 4 eclipse award winners. Also, Secretariat was just recovering from a nasty virus, which IMO cost him the Whitney Stakes, about 4 weeks earlier. The concensus was, that he was at about 80% for this race. No matter, he blew by these great older horses, including his stable mate Riva Ridge, like they were tied to a fire hydrant. He also did so in world record time for 1 1 1/8th miles. 1:45 2/5ths. I never got to see Secretariat run in the Belmont Stakes, in person, although I was scheduled to go. I watched it live on TV. If that was Secretariats greatest performance, and that would be hard to argue against, this was his 2nd best, IMO.
He didn't look like he was spent; I don't know how much faster he could have gone but I'm pretty sure he had enough gas in the tank that he could've tied or broken Spectacular Bid's WR of 1:57 4/5 for a mile and a quarter. He only needed a 12 2/5 furlong to tie it and, the way he was running, I think he had it in him.
@@johnhunter2294Easing after the finish track clockers unofficially timed Secretariat at 1:57 4/5 for the mile and a quarter.
@@williampercy7199 Would've tied the Bid's record. And he was a three-year-old. If he'd run as a four-year-old, with another year of growth and training, he'd have put the records for every distance from a mile to a mile and a half out of reach forever.
Facts that lead to truths are so interesting. It makes it that much more fun to "drone" the ignorant.
Lol. On a different racing vid, someone claimed that Secretariat ran against mostly underachieving horses, none of whom ever set a track record. I am preparing my ammunition. Of Secretariat's competitors *in this race alone*:
Riva Ridge: 2 track records, 1 world record
Cougar II : track record, turf course record, American turf record
Key to the Mint: equaled track record
Kennedy Road: track record
Onion: track record
And of course, these horses own 4 U.S. championship titles and 5 Canadian championship titles.
This does not count Sham, Linda's Chief, Tentam or FOREGO.
Where the hell was prove out? He should have bin in this race rte here.
He was fragile as glass and probably was not in the invitational list
There was no reason to invite him. He beat Secretariat after this race.
Riva Ridge made him work for it.
CBS used to call this race The Cup. Couldn’t mention the cigarette sponsor.🏇🏻🏇🏻🏇🏻🏇🏻🏇🏻🏇🏻🏇🏻🏇🏻
Secretariat's only win against open company on dirt.
Love you big boy
He is doing it easily.
That was taken on September 15, 1973 at belmont right?
I read an interview with Penny Chenery Tweedy's daughter. She said her mother respected and admired Secretariat, but that she loved Riva Ridge. Riva Ridge apparently was a real sweetie pie and Mrs. Tweedy just loved him.
GOAT
and who expected a different outcome?
Laurin questioned Turcotte's decision to ride Secretariat rather than stablemate Riva Ridge. Maybe Laurin figured
a great four-year-old would beat a great three-year-old? (As would happen in a few years with Seattle Slew vs. Affirmed and Affirmed vs. Spectacular Bid.)
So Riva RIdge defeated Onion, but later Onion defeated Secretariat. Horse racing, shssshhh....dont' know about this sometimes a mystery.
I had not seen this race in quite sometime. Onion had defeated Secretariat in the Whitney. But the Secretariat team took no chances here. Using the 72 Kentucky Derby winner, Riva Ridge as a rabbit to burn onion out early. Then put in no effort in the stretch.so his stablemate would win. Secretariat lost his next race as well, without the rabbit effect. Phone Out kicked his butt. Definitely not in the same league as other champions. Struggled bad in open company.
Riva Ridge put in no effort in the,stretch? Then how did he come in 2nd ahead of 5 really good horses?
Thats Prove Out, partner.
Do not understand why The Great Cougar 2nd was kept so far behind, its mind boggling. Has to be the worst jockey performance I've ever seen in my life time (pat day on Easy Goer in Preakness 2nd). Incredible. Incredulous. Around the far turn Cougar 2nd was coming like a freight train then on the top of the stretch for some unknown reason the jockey chooses to take the middle lane where Cougar 2nd is seriously impeded instead of taking the outside. Obviously, Cougar 2nd would have won with a better ride.
rodd7 Maybe. But I think Cougar would just have pushed Secretariat earlier like Sham did. A usual Secretariat won while extending his lead.
rodd7 No-he could never take Secretariat. Not when you set a world record.
+rodd7 You are a very foolish man-Cougar couldn`t beat Secretariat with a 20 length head start. Did I say 20? I should have said 31. Does that number ring a bell in your dense head? You better go watch the Belmont race again.
+rodd7 --In your dreams. Cougar was a great horse, but he didn't have a chance against a genetic freak.
+Susan Nunes -That dummy kinda forgot the outside is slower and it`s the rail that gives them the edge. Secretariat`s specialty was coming from behind and on the outside which is extremely difficult.
Piece of cake X 2
😍
Easy Goer was Being Compared to Secretariat and for Legit Reasons...Unfortunately Easy Goer had a Rider that was Spoiled Aboard him and Had No Respect for his Rival (Sunday Silence) or Any other Field and it Cost him some Big Races that He Certainly Should have Won
The only reason Secretariat ever lost a race is because he was handled by humans.
Secretariat wasn't even fully fit in this rae. He'd barely recovered fron the fever which caused him the run 2nd in the Whitney. All his training splits leading up this race were disastrous by his extremely high standards, except the very last training session.
9Ballr ... Secretariat lost 2 races due to bad health...he stepped on a nail, and had an abscessed tooth in another race.. he had a cold in his last race and still won by 6 or 7 lengths.
Stepped on a nail?
Running Down a Dream I never knew that he stepped.on a nail either, my God,.that must have hurt, poor horse.
@@TheJustjim3333 I think that was Spectacular Bid
Riva Ridge would beat any horse who ever lived on a fast track
The Marlboro was run on a wet track. The track condition was rated good on the tote board but the chart of the race says "fast" which it was not. There was a lot of water on it.
"In the 10, maybe 15 minutes it took to take that walk, Charlie must have wiped Secretariat’s ass at least nine or ten times," Nack said. "Diarrhea was running down his back legs. I asked Eddie, ‘Is he sick? Did he eat something?’ Eddie said, ‘Naw, he’s just nervous.’ ‘Nervous?’ I said. ‘What the hell’s he got to be nervous about?’ "
In fact, Secretariat had been talking to his people. Prior to the Whitney he worked too fast, then too slow. Jockey Ron Turcotte voiced his concerns to trainer Lucien Laurin, but the show went on. There was great pressure to run, coming not only from track management but also a TV network tied to a four-race series in New York, with Secretariat as the star, and from the thousands of fans who were making a pilgrimage to Saratoga just to see the colt in the flesh.
"I was learning then that anything could happen in horse racing," said Penny Chenery, Secretariat’s owner. "We knew he had a low-grade infection. But we decided he was strong enough to win anyway, and we were wrong.
"I try not to brood about it. It was a bad result, but it did make the Marlboro much more important."
+bbmtge she actually said that???
+SoHills VetTech That is correct, sir. Here is the link.
news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1957&dat=19930725&id=3XohAAAAIBAJ&sjid=F4oFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3150,5646712&hl=en
Or...just google...Secretariat Whitney Stakes Google. Great article, especially his training run 8 days before the Whitney, in the slop, and under 132-133 pounds using an exercise saddle, which was common for his training.
The best info I have found to date about what happened at the Whitney.
+bbmtge wow, thanks so much!!! Super interesting article. I've heard he trained at 132 but never had black and white confirmation of that!! Thank u again! any other interesting facts or articles u know of about his races, in particular the wood or Woodward??
cs.bloodhorse.com/blogs/horse-racing-steve-haskin/archive/2008/08/04/The-Unbeatable-Horse.aspx
www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/ask-ray-secretariat-and-the-travers/
Couple of excellent articles, including training stats.
+bbmtge thanks!!
This was racing to get excited about--not the crap they put on show now
Riva Ridge was so underrated, He was also owned by penny chennery! 🥹