Legends

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Ruthless: The First Belmont Stakes Winner

Although the three Triple Crown races have existed since the 1800s, and hundreds of individual horses have added their names to the lists of winners, only 12 fillies in history have won a Triple Crown race.

Those victories, though more frequent in the early years, have been few and far between; in fact, just five fillies have won a Triple Crown race during the last 100 years.

Winning Colors: Lukas’ Kentucky Derby-Winning Filly

At the beginning of 1988, the attention of the racing world was focused – as usual – on the road to the Kentucky Derby. At the time, if you had asked racing fans to predict the winner of the 114th run for the roses, you might have heard support for Tejano, a four-time graded stakes winner in 1987; Forty Niner, the champion 2-year-old male; or perhaps Success Express, winner of the 1987 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

Champion racehorse and top sire A.P. Indy at Lane's End Farm in 2006.

1992 Horse of the Year A.P. Indy: Destined for Greatness

A.P. Indy was seemingly born to greatness. He was sired by Seattle Slew, a Triple Crown winner. His successful dam (mother), Weekend Surprise, was no surprise because she was sired by Secretariat, another Triple Crown champion.

Ambitious owners will pay massive sums for such regal bloodlines, so it was no shock that Japanese owner Tomonori Tsurumaki went to $2.9 million before the auctioneer’s hammer fell at Keeneland’s July yearling sale in 1990.

Belmont Winner Rags to Riches in League of Her Own

Todd Pletcher has won more than 5,850 races in his extraordinary training career. One stands out above the rest.

That would be the 2007 Belmont Stakes, when big-hearted Rags to Riches became only the third filly to win the famed “Test of the Champion” and the first since Tanya in 1905.

Secretariat and Ron Turcotte after winning the 1973 Preakness stakes.

Secretariat, the Preakness, and a 39-Year Controversy

Maximum Security’s disqualification in the 2019 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve inspired much controversy, and the debate at times felt like the 1950 Kurosawa film “Rashomon,” where multiple witnesses to an event retell it in vastly different ways. All of us saw the same race, yet so many people have different interpretations of what they saw.

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