Buckpasser (1963–1978) was a champion American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic ...

who was the 1966 Horse of the Year. His other achievements include 1965 Champion Two-Year-Old, 1966 Champion Three-Year-Old, 1966 Champion Handicap Horse, and 1967 Champion Handicap Horse. He was also the leading broodmare sire in 1983, 1984, and 1989.

Background

Buckpasser was a

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colt that was bred and owned by Ogden Phipps and foaled at

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. ...

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

. He was by the Horse of the Year-winner

Tom Fool Tom Fool (March 31, 1949 – August 20, 1976) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the 1953 American Horse of the Year and was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame. He sired the champion racehorses Buckpasser and Tim Tam. Bac ...

, and his dam was the stakes-winning mare Busanda, by the Triple Crown-winner

War Admiral War Admiral (May 2, 1934 – October 30, 1959) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the fourth winner of the American Triple Crown. He was also the 1937 Horse of the Year and well known as the rival of Seabiscuit in the 'Matc ...

. Busanda's second dam was the " blue hen" broodmare La Troienne (FR). Buckpasser was a half-brother to several other horses that included the stakes-winners Bupers (won $221,688) and Bureaucracy ($156,635). Buckpasser was inbred in the fourth generation (4m x 4f) to the French racehorse and influential sire Teddy.Craig, Dennis, ''Breeding Racehorses from Cluster Mares'', J A Allen, London, 1964 Racing official Dr. Manuel Gilman said of him, "Generally, every horse has about a hundred faults of conformation. I would defy anybody to pick a flaw in Buckpasser." Renowned horse painter

Richard Stone Reeves Richard Stone Reeves (November 6, 1919 – October 7, 2005) was an American equine painter whom ''Blood-Horse magazine'' described as perhaps the greatest modern-day horse painter. Born in New York City, Reeves grew up in Garden City on Long Isl ...

said, "Buckpasser was the most perfectly proportioned Thoroughbred I have ever seen." Only two horses, Secretariat and

Affirmed Affirmed (February 21, 1975 – January 12, 2001) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the eleventh winner of the American Triple Crown. Affirmed was well known for his famous rivalry with Alydar, whom he met ten times, inclu ...

, have since been "in a class with Buckpasser".

Racing career

Buckpasser had two trainers, both since elected to the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame.

Bill Winfrey William Colin Winfrey (May 9, 1916 – April 14, 1994) was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Bill Winfrey was born Colin Dickard. His father died when he was three, and two years later his mother married Hall-of-Fame tra ...

began his training, and when he retired, Eddie Neloy took over and prepared Buckpasser for his three-year-old season. Buckpasser's first race start was on May 13, 1965, in which he ran a poor fourth. It was the only time he did not place. When Buckpasser ran in the Flamingo Stakes, the race was declared a nonwagering event, forever after called the "Chicken" Flamingo. After his two-year-old season and spring, he was placed at the top of the Experimental Free Handicap with 126 pounds. Buckpasser developed a quarter crack that kept him out of the 1966

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-yea ...

, as well as the Preakness and Belmont Stakes. It took almost three months for the crack to heal. In

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

's Arlington Classic, Kauai King ran against the strenuous protests of his trainer. He broke down and was retired, while Buckpasser won the race, setting a new world record for a mile with a time of 1:32 3/5. This record stood for two years until Dr. Fager broke it in 1968, running 1:32 1/5. In 1989, Buckpasser's grandson, Hall of Fame Champion Easy Goer, ran a mile in 1:32 2/5. Buckpasser won 15 consecutive races that included the American Derby (breaking the track record), the Chicago Stakes, the Brooklyn Derby, the Woodward Stakes, the

Travers Stakes The Travers Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is nicknamed the "Mid-Summer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds acco ...

, the Malibu Stakes, the Brooklyn Handicap, the Lawrence Realization Stakes, and the two-mile-long

Jockey Club Gold Cup The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It has traditionally been the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the ...

. With 13 victories as a three-year-old, Buckpasser became the first horse to earn more than $1 million before the age of four. He was named the 1966

American Horse of the Year The American Award for Horse of the Year, one of the Eclipse Awards, is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. Because Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States has no governing body to sanction the various awards, "Hor ...

. His four-year-old season commenced with a win in the San Fernando Stakes. Another quarter crack developed in Buckpasser’s off (right) fore hoof, and he did not race for 4½ months. When he returned, he scored his 15th consecutive victory in the Metropolitan Mile. On June 17, 1967, Buckpasser's winning streak ended with his first and only attempt at racing on grass. He finished third to stablemate Poker in the Bowling Green Handicap at

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park and Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack located within New York City limits. Its racing ...

. Assagai, the 1966 turf-course champion, finished second. As ''

The Blood-Horse ''BloodHorse'' is a multimedia news organization covering Thoroughbred racing and breeding that started with a newsletter first published in 1916 as a monthly bulletin put out by the Thoroughbred Horse Association.

'' said in its July 24, 1967, issue: "Never had so many people had so many immunization shots in order to stay home and watch the

Suburban Handicap The Suburban Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is now run at the mile distance on dirt for a $700,000 purse. Named after the City and Su ...

on Independence Day." Three reasons were advanced for his defeat: turf, shoes, and weight. Buckpasser also ran that day with his head held in an uncommon way, slightly sideways. No one has ever understood why. He won 25 of his 31 races, including a 15-race winning streak, earned five Eclipse Awards between 1965 and 1967, and was inducted to the Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1970.

Stud record

When he retired, Buckpasser was syndicated for $4,800,000: a record $150,000 a share. He stood at stud at the farm where he was born. In 11 years, he sired 313 foals, of which 35 won stakes races. Included in his get were: *

La Prevoyante La Prevoyante (1970–1974) was a Canadian-bred thoroughbred race horse elected to the Racing Halls of Fame in the United States and Canada. Background La Prevoyante was bred and owned by Jean-Louis Lévesque. Her sire was Buckpasser, a son ...

(

Sovereign Award for Horse of the Year The Canadian Horse of the Year is a thoroughbred horse racing honour given annually since 1951 by the Jockey Club of Canada. It is the most prestigious honour in Canadian thoroughbred horse racing. Part of the Sovereign Awards program since 197 ...

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Eclipse Award The Eclipse Award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th-century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. An Eclipse Award Trophy is presented to the winner in each division that is made by a few small selected America ...

Champion two-year-old filly in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, Champion Older Female in Canada), * L'Enjoleur (CAN) (won

Manitoba Derby The Manitoba Derby is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the beginning of August at Assiniboia Downs in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from ...

Quebec Derby The Quebec Derby was a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race held annually between 1961 and 1975 at Blue Bonnets Raceway in Montreal, Canada. A race for three-year-olds on dirt, it was run over a distance of 1⅛ miles (9 furlongs or 1,811 metres). The ...

, etc.) * Numbered Account, (Champion two-year-old filly, dam of Private Account, sire of undefeated Personal Ensign) * Paristo ( Illinois Derby) *

Quick As Lightning Quick As Lightning (17 March 1977 – 1981) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the classic 1000 Guineas in 1980. She was one of the leading British-trained juvenile fillies of 1979, when she w ...

(

1,000 Guineas The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,6 ...

) * Relaxing (Champion Older Female, Broodmare of the Year, dam of Belmont Stakes-winner Easy Goer), * Sex Appeal dam of El Gran Senor and Try My Best *

Silver Buck Silver Buck (1972–1984) was an Irish-bred racehorse who became a champion steeplechaser when trained in England by the Dickinson family. He was the winner of the 1982 Cheltenham Gold Cup, and the 1979 and 1980 runnings of the King George VI C ...

(

Whitney Handicap The Whitney Stakes (run as the Whitney Handicap through 2013 and still sometimes referred to as such) is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of miles. The current purse is $1, ...

, sire of Kentucky Derby-winner Silver Charm) * State Dinner (

Century Handicap The Century Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually from 1901 through 1909 at Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Brooklyn, New York. A Weight for Age race open to horses age three and older, it was contested on dirt over a dista ...

, etc.) * Toll Booth (Broodmare of the Year). Though he had three tail-male Kentucky Derby (G1) winners ( Spend a Buck-1985,

Lil E. Tee Lil E. Tee (March 29, 1989 – March 18, 2009) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who in 1992 scored one of the biggest upsets in the history of the Kentucky Derby. Background A bay colt, Lil E. Tee was bred in Pennsylvania by Lawrence ...

-1992 and Silver Charm-1997), his record as a damsire stands out. Buckpasser was a leading broodmare sire in 1983, 1984, and 1989. His daughters have produced Champions and Classic Winners: They are led by Hall of Famers Easy Goer and Slew o' Gold, Belmont Stakes winners

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and

Touch Gold Touch Gold (foaled May 26, 1994 in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known as the winner of the Classic Belmont Stakes, in which he ended Silver Charm's bid for the U.S. Triple Crown. Background Sired by Canadian Horse Raci ...

, and With Approval, as well as El Gran Senor among a number of other influential stallions such as

Seeking The Gold Seeking The Gold (April 7, 1985 – July 28, 2016) was an American thoroughbred racehorse and a successful sire. Background and Family Seeking The Gold, a bay colt, was bred in Kentucky by Ogden Phipps, who also owned him. One of numerous t ...

, Miswaki, and Woodman.

Honors

In ''The Blood-Horse'' magazine ranking of the top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20th Century, Buckpasser is #14. Buckpasser died in 1978 at age 15 and is buried at

Pedigree

References