Faultless (foaled 1944 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 ...

) was an American

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 ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, 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 bas ...

best known for winning the 1947

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually on Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland (except in 2026 when it will move to Laurel Park (race track), Laurel Park dur ...

Background

He was bred and raced by

Calumet Farm Calumet Farm is a Thoroughbred breeding and training farm established in 1924 in Lexington, Kentucky, United States by William Monroe Wright, founding owner of the Calumet Baking Powder Company. Calumet is located in the heart of the Bluegrass ...

. His dam, Unerring, was the 1939 American Co-Champion Three-Year-Old Filly. His sire was Calumet's preeminent stallion

Bull Lea Bull Lea (March 11, 1935 – June 16, 1964) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who is best known as the foundation sire responsible for making Calumet Farm one of the most successful racing stables in American history. In their ...

, who was the sire of seven U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductees. He was trained by the father/son team of

Ben Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett, Benson or Ebenezer, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben meaning "son of" is also found in Arabic as ''Ben'' (dialectal Arabic) or ''bin ...

and Jimmy Jones, Faultless was ridden in most of his races by

Douglas Dodson Douglas Allan Dodson (December 21, 1921 - February, 1982) was a National Champion jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing. Early life Douglas Dodson was born in Pickardville, Alberta, Canada, the son of James Floyd and Emma Dodson. His fami ...

Racing career

At age two, Faultless did not win a major

stakes race The following is a glossary of North American horse racing. Additional glossaries at: *Glossary of Australian and New Zealand punting *Glossary of equestrian terms This is a basic glossary of equestrian terms that includes both technical term ...

, but at age three, he won three important races leading up to the 1947 U.S. Triple Crown series. Despite this, 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 ...

he was sent off as the fifth choice by bettors behind heavily favored

Phalanx The phalanx (: phalanxes or phalanges) was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar polearms tightly packed together. The term is particularly used t ...

. Faultless ran third in the Derby behind Phalanx and winner Jet Pilot. In the ensuing

, Dodson guided the colt to a win over Jet Pilot, who finished fourth, and Phalanx, who finished third. In the

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over the worldwide classic distance of . Colt (horseracing), Colt ...

, Phalanx bounced back to win the race with Faultless finishing fifth. Faultless continued racing through age five, then entered

stud Stud may refer to: 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 in San Francisco * ...

in 1950. His offspring met with modest racing success.

Pedigree

References

Faultless's pedigree and partial racing stats
{{Preakness Stakes Winners 1944 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Preakness Stakes winners Thoroughbred family 4-m