Got Koko (foaled January 25, 1999 in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, died 2009) 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 ...

, one of only three horses bred in the

State of Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

to ever win a

Grade 1 First grade (also 1st Grade or Grade 1) is the first year of formal or compulsory education. It is the first year of elementary school, and the first school year after kindergarten. Children in first grade are usually 6–7 years old. Examples ...

stakes. She was bred by Eileen H. Hartis who sold her for $30,000 at the 2000 Keeneland September yearling sale to trainer

Bruce Headley Bruce Edmund Headley (14 February 1934 – 15 January 2021) was a Thoroughbred horse trainer and owner. Biography Involved with horse racing since his teens, Headley worked as an exercise rider from 1949 until taking out his trainers license in 1 ...

who sold a twenty-five percent interest in the filly to Paul Leung for $25,000. Conditioned for racing by Bruce Headley, Got Koko raced under the name of his wife Aase and Paul Leung. In 2003, Got Koko became just the third-ever winner of the ''La Cañada Series'' for

fillies 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, th ...

Santa Anita Park Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious race ...

since its inception in 1975. The three-race series consists of the La Brea, El Encino and

La Cañada Stakes The La Cañada Stakes is a Grade III American thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares age four-years-old and older over a distance of one-and-one-sixteenth miles on the dirt track held annually in January at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, C ...

for newly turning/turned 4-year old fillies run at an increasing distance. In addition, in winning the 2003

Lady's Secret Breeders' Cup Handicap The Zenyatta Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, age three and older the distance of one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt scheduled annually in September at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. The ...

, Got Koko defeated

American Horse of the Year The American Award for Horse of the Year, or simply 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 san ...

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who came into the race having won eleven straight races. Got Koko went on to finish third to winner

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in the

Breeders' Cup Distaff The Breeders' Cup Distaff is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, three years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic between 2008 and 2012, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United Stat ...

. Got Koko returned to racing in January 2004, finishing third in the Grade I

Santa Monica Handicap The Santa Monica Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually in late January/early February at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. Open to fillies and mares age four and older, it is run on the dirt over a distance of s ...

. An ankle injury kept her out of racing until September 2004 when the decision was made to retire her. Two months later she was sold to Jess Jackson through Emmanuel de Seroux's Narvic International agency for US$1.5 million at the November Keeneland Sales. Bred to

A.P. Indy A.P. Indy (March 31, 1989 – February 21, 2020) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Belmont Stakes and Breeders' Cup Classic on his way to American Horse of the Year honors in 1992. His time in the Belmont Stakes tied Easy Goer for ...

, Got Koko produced her first foal in 2006 named Koko Pop. She died while giving birth to a foal by Bernardini.

References

Got Koko's pedigree and partial racing stats

November 6, 2004 ''Thoroughbred Times'' article titled ''Mileposts: Small Texas breeder Hartis hits jackpot without spending big bucks''
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611000449/http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/weekly-feature-articles/2004/november/06/mileposts-small-texas-breeder-hartis-hits-jackpot-without-spending-big-bucks.aspx , date=June 11, 2011
Got Koko at the NTRA
1999 racehorse births 2009 racehorse deaths Thoroughbred family 1-n Racehorses bred in Texas Racehorses trained in the United States