Best Pal (February 12, 1988 – November 24, 1998) was an American Hall of Fame champion racehorse, who retired as the all time record for purses of any California-bred earning (since surpassed) for his owners, the Golden Eagle Farm, US$5.6 million over his lifetime.

Background

Best Pal was a brown gelding bred by John & Betty Mabee. Best Pal was a descendant of

Princequillo Princequillo (1940–1964) was a Thoroughbred Thoroughbred horse race, racehorse conceived in France and born in Ireland. He is known for his performances in long-distance races and his successes as a Horse breeding#Terminology, sire. Backgroun ...

on both his sire's and dam's line. He was gelded at an early age due to being "studdish and unmanageable".

Racing career

Best Pal won the first running of the Pacific Classic at Del Mar, and finished second in the 1991

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 ...

. He won the Hollywood Gold Cup and the Santa Anita Handicap, thus capturing all three of California's premier handicap races. In all, Best Pal won 18 races—17 of them stakes—nearly all in California.

Retirement

Retired in 1996, Best Pal had a massive heart attack while on his way to a training track at Golden Eagle Farm. He was buried at the farm, and a large

boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...

with a plaque covers his grave. Best Pal was voted into the

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred horse racing, Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and Horse trainer, trainers. In 1955, the museum ...

in 2010.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1988 racehorse births 1998 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in California Thoroughbred family 2-h Racehorses trained in the United States American Grade 1 Stakes winners United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees