Hoop Jr. (March 15, 1942 – November 19, 1964) 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 1945 Kentucky Derby.

Background

Hoop Jr. was a bay horse sired by the French-bred

stallion A stallion is an adult male horse that has not been gelded ( castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cre ...

Sir Gallahad Sir Gallahad (1920–1949) was a French Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and an important Horse breeding, sire in the United States. Racing career Racing at age two in France for his British breeder/owner, Jefferson Davis Cohn, Sir Gallahad ...

, a full brother to Bull Dog, who sired

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 ...

. He was out of the American stakes winning

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more th ...

One Hour, a daughter of the French bred Snob, who had been purchased for the third highest amount ever paid for a horse imported into the United States for racing purposes. Hoop Jr. was the first Thoroughbred horse Fred W. Hooper, an

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

building contractor A contractor (North American English) or builder (British English), is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and the communication of information to all involved parties throughout the c ...

, ever bought. He paid $10,000 for the colt at the

Keeneland Sales Keeneland Sales is an American Thoroughbred auction house in Lexington, Kentucky founded in 1935 as a nonprofit racing/auction entity on 147 acres (0.59 km2) of farmland west of Lexington, which had been owned by Jack O. Keene. A division o ...

and named him after his youngest son, Fred Jr. Hooper was quoted many years later saying, "I liked the way he looked, the way he walked, everything, and I said, 'I'm going to own you.'"

Racing career

At the age of two, Hoop Jr. started in five modest stakes events. He won twice and placed three times (the Bowie Kindergarten Stakes, the Pimlico Nursery Stakes, and the Aberdeen Stakes), then developed osselets, a condition that mostly afflicts young horses. Hooper had his "ankles fired" (heat applied), then turned him out at his Alabama Farm to save him for the following year's

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 ...

. Most considered this ambition overly optimistic. he History of Thoroughbred Horse Racing in America/ref> But Hooper, who raced Susan's Girl, Precisionist, and Copelan, said, "He was the best racehorse I ever owned. He could run as far as races are laid out and as fast as anybody." Trained by Ivan Parke, in his three-year-old debut, Hoop Jr. came in fourth, the only time in his career when more than one rival finished before him. He was beaten by the great

filly 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 ...

Gallorette Gallorette (1942–1959) was a Maryland-bred chestnut thoroughbred filly who became a Hall of Fame race horse. Sired by Challenger II, out of Gallette, Gallorette's damsire was Sir Gallahad III. Breeding Trainer Preston M. Burch bought Gallett ...

as well. In 1945, the

Wood Memorial The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memorial ...

was run in two divisions. In the first, Gallorette came in second to

Jeep Jeep is an American automobile brand, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with other assets, from its previous owner, American Motors Co ...

. In the second division, Hoop Jr. won, running faster than both Gallorette and Jeep in their division. In the 1945 Kentucky Derby,

Eddie Arcaro George Edward Arcaro (February 19, 1916 – November 14, 1997) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who won more American classic races than any other jockey in history and is the only rider to have won the U.S. Triple ...

rode Hoop Jr. over a muddy track against a field of 15. He took the lead going past the grandstand the first time and kept increasing it until he won by six lengths against Pot o' Luck and Darby Dieppe. Hooper had won the Kentucky Derby with his first

race horse ''Race Horse'' was an 1850 clipper barque. She set a record of 109 days from New York to San Francisco during the first Clipper Race around the Horn. Construction ''Race Horse'' was similar to a barque built by Samuel Hall a few years earlier, ...

. He said, "I never thought I'd make it this quick." One week later, Hoop Jr. ran in the

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 ...

.http://www.thetriplecrownproject.info/career.php?year=1945 Running in third place (although for a time he was pinched in along the rail), he made his move only to suddenly give way. The race was won by Polynesian, and Hoop Jr. came in second with a bowed tendon.

Stud record

His racing career over, he entered stud in 1946. He died and was buried at Hooper Farm in

Ocala, Florida Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Florida, United States. Located in North Central Florida, the city's population was 63,591 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 56,315 at the 2010 census and making ...

, in 1964. Owner Fred W. Hooper died in August 2000, aged 102.

Pedigree

References

External links

Hoop Jr. pedigree, photo and stats
{{Kentucky Derby Winners 1942 racehorse births 1964 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Kentucky Derby winners Thoroughbred family 9