Crepello (1954–1974) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

-bred

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 ...

which won England's most prestigious race, the

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey ...

in 1957 and was later a

Leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland The title of champion, or leading, sire of racehorses in Great Britain and Ireland is awarded to the stallion whose offspring have won the most prize money in Britain and Ireland during the flat racing season. The current champion is Frankel, who ...

Pedigree

He was a chestnut horse sired by Donatello II (by Blenheim) in his last year of life. His dam was the race winner, and Star mare, Crepuscule by Mieuxce. Crepuscule created a British bloodstock record by producing Classic winners, Honeylight and Crepello as her first two foals.Leicester, Sir Charles, ''Bloodstock Breeding'', J.A. Allen & Co, London, 1969 Crepello was a half-brother to Honeylight (won One Thousand Guineas Stakes) and

Twilight Alley Twilight Alley (1959 – September 1976) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. A series of physical problems restricted him to four races a track career which lasted from July 1962 to July 1963. On his third racecourse appearance he ...

(

Ascot Gold Cup The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards (4,01 ...

Stakes).Morris, Simon; ''Tesio Power 2000 - Stallions of the World'', Syntax Software

Racing record

Crepello was trained by

Noel Murless Sir Charles Francis Noel Murless (24 March 19109 May 1987) was an English racehorse trainer who one of the most successful of the twentieth century. Murless began his career as a trainer in 1935 at Hambleton Lodge in Yorkshire before moving to H ...

at Newmarket. He was always ridden by jockey,

Lester Piggott Lester Keith Piggott (5 November 1935 – 29 May 2022) was an English professional jockey and trainer. With 4,493 career flat racing wins in Britain, including a record nine Epsom Derby victories, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest ...

. As a two-year-old he finished second in his debut race, the Windsor Castle Stakes, fourth in the

Middle Park Stakes The Middle Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is ...

and won the

Dewhurst Stakes The Dewhurst Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres ...

. Due to unsound forelegs, the horse always raced wearing bandages. At age three Crepello raced only twice but won two Classic Races. The first was the

2,000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year ...

, followed by a victory over future star

Ballymoss Ballymoss (1954–1979) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse. In a racing career that lasted from 1956 until November 1958, he ran seventeen times and won eight races. In 1957, he became the first horse trained in Ireland to win the St Leger S ...

in the Epsom Derby. Crepello's winning time of 2:35.4 seconds was the fastest since 1936. However, this was to be the great horse's last race. His tendons, always delicate, began to cause significant problems and he missed the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes before being retired not long before the

St Leger Stakes The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster ove ...

. He only had five starts but was undefeated in his last three, all of which are now

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern race system introduce ...

races.

Stud record

Retired to

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay bar ...

at his owner's Eve Stud in Woodditton,

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

, Crepello was the

leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland The title of champion, or leading, sire of racehorses in Great Britain and Ireland is awarded to the stallion whose offspring have won the most prize money in Britain and Ireland during the flat racing season. The current champion is Frankel, who ...

in 1969 and the Champion Broodmare sire in 1974. Notable progeny include: * Busted, unbeaten at four in 1967 and voted the U.K. Horse of the Year, £58,937 sireAhnert, Rainer L. (editor in chief), ''Thoroughbred Breeding of the World'', Pozdun Publishing, Germany, 1970 * Caergwrle, winner of the 1968

1000 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 (1,60 ...

, * Mysterious, winner of the 1973 1,000 Guineas and The Oaks * Celina (

Irish Oaks The Irish Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it i ...

) * Crepellana (

Prix de Diane The Prix de Diane, sometimes referred to as the French Oaks, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 2,100 met ...

) * Crest of the Wave (sire in New Zealand) * Soderini (stakeswinner, £28,128, sire) * Bleu Azur, dam of

Altesse Royale Altesse Royale (foaled 1968) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. In a brief racing career, lasting from October 1970 until September 1971 she ran five times and won four races. In 1971 she won the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket, the Oaks at Epso ...

(Epsom Oaks, One Thousand Guineas, Irish Oaks Stakes etc.) * Marlia, dam of Marduk II which won the German Derby and consecutive runnings of Germany's

Grosser Preis von Baden The Grosser Preis von Baden is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Baden-Baden over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is sched ...

in 1974 and 1975. Crepello's record as sire was somewhat restricted by the fact that a number of his stock had bad legs and were untrainable.

Honours

Following the

London & North Eastern Railway The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was the second largest (after LMS) of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain. It operated from 1 January 1923 until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. At that ...

tradition of naming locomotives after winning racehorses,

British Rail British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four (British ra ...

ways " Deltic" Diesel locomotive no. D9012 (later 55012) was named after the horse on 4 September 1961, and remained in service until 18 May 1981.

References

External links

Crepello's pedigree and racing stats
{{Epsom Derby Winners 1954 racehorse births 1974 racehorse deaths Epsom Derby winners Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom British Champion Thoroughbred broodmare sires Thoroughbred family 16-d Chefs-de-Race 2000 Guineas winners