First Samurai is a

thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

race horse ''Race Horse'' was an 1850 clipper barque. She set a record of 109 days from New York to San Francisco during the first Clipper Race around the Horn. Construction ''Race Horse'' was similar to a barque built by Samuel Hall a few years earlier, ...

born February 2, 2003. He was a contender for the Triple Crown in 2006, but a starting gate incident contributed to his defeat in the

Blue Grass Stakes The Blue Grass Stakes, currently the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes due to sponsorship by the Toyota Motor Corporation, is a horse race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually in April at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky. The race is ru ...

. Two weeks after the race, First Samurai was diagnosed with two broken ribs following an

ultrasound Ultrasound is sound with frequency, frequencies greater than 20 Hertz, kilohertz. This frequency is the approximate upper audible hearing range, limit of human hearing in healthy young adults. The physical principles of acoustic waves apply ...

. He was not entered in the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

, with his injury cited as the reason. The Blue Grass ultimately proved to be his final race.

Connections

First Samurai is owned by

Bruce Lunsford William Bruce Lunsford (born November 11, 1947) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician from Kentucky. He has served various roles in the Kentucky Democratic Party, including party treasurer, Deputy Development Secretary, and Head ...

Tom Hansen, Tom Morris & Raymond Coudriet and is trained by Frank Brothers. He has been ridden by

Pat Day Patrick Alan "Pat" Day (born October 13, 1953, in Brush, Colorado) is a retired American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991 an ...

and

Jerry Bailey Jerry D. Bailey (born August 29, 1957) is a retired American Hall of Fame jockey and current NBC Sports thoroughbred racing analyst. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest jockeys of all time. Early years Bailey was born in Dallas, Texas bu ...

, both jockeys now retired, and the still racing

Edgar Prado Edgar S. Prado (born June 12, 1967) is a retired Peruvian jockey in thoroughbred horse racing. Prado's big break came in 1997 when he won 536 races, making him the fourth rider in history to win 500 races in one year. Much of that success was ga ...

. First Samurai was bred in

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

by John D. Gunther.

Races

In his career, cut short by injury, he started 8 times, winning 5, placing in 1, showing in 1, with total earnings of $915,075

Stud career

First Samurai stands at stud at the Hancock Family's

Claiborne Farm Claiborne Farm is a thoroughbred horse breeding operation near Paris, Kentucky. It was established in 1910 by Arthur B. Hancock, owner of Ellerslie Stud in Albemarle County, Virginia, and has been operated by members of his family ever since. ...

near

Paris, Kentucky Paris is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky, and the county seat. It lies northeast of Lexington on the Stoner Fork of the Licking River. It is part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2020, it ha ...

. His starting fee in 2007 was $40,000 and stood alongside Claiborne's other stallions, which included Pulpit, Seeking the Gold, During, Eddington, and Strong Hope. First Samurai's descendants include: ''c = colt, f =

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States ...

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist

External links

First Samurai's pedigree

National Thoroughbred Racing Association bio
2003 racehorse births Racehorses trained in the United States Racehorses bred in Kentucky Thoroughbred family 13