Lil E. Tee
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Lil E. Tee (March 29, 1989 – March 18, 2009) was an
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...
-bred
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 ...
who in 1992 scored one of the biggest upsets in the history of 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 ...
.


Background

A
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colt, Lil E. Tee was bred in
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
by Lawrence I. Littman. The name of the colt was explained by Gwen Rynkiewicz, assistant trainer at Laurel Race Course: All of Littman's horses have "Lil," the initials of Lawrence I. Littman, somewhere in their names. Rynkiewicz said she was told "that Lil E. Tee was so ugly and gangly when he was a foal that they named him after E.T., the extraterrestrial creature in the Steven Spielberg
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." Many sportswriters have described his pedigree as being unimpressive. Although his sire, At the Threshold, was a multiple Grade I stakes winner, he produced only eight stakes winners during his stud career. Lil E. Tee's dam, Eileen's Moment, never won a race and had career earnings of $570. However, At the Threshold was sired by
Norcliffe Norcliffe (1973–1984) was a Canadian Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse. He was sired by U.S. Hall of Fame Champion Buckpasser out of the mare Drama School by Northern Dancer. Owned by the Norcliffe Stable of Charles F. Baker, Chairman of ...
, who was a son of U.S. Hall of Fame Champion
Buckpasser Buckpasser (1963– March 6, 1978) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a ...
. Norcliffe earned Horse of the Year honours in
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and was elected to the
Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 to honour those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness racing, harness and Thoroughbred racing, Thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. It is located at Woodbine ...
. At
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 * ...
, he was North America's leading juvenile sire by number of wins and was second in earnings in 1981. As a weanling, Lil E. Tee nearly died but was saved by emergency stomach surgery. Considered to have little racing potential, he was sold for $2,000 as a yearling. When he was two, his owner tried to sell him again but was rejected by an auction company that deemed the horse unsaleable. Lil E. Tee ended up in the hands of a Florida owner and was stabled at
Calder Race Course Calder Casino is a casino located in Miami Gardens, Florida. It includes slots, electronic table games, and bingo. The casino opened in 2010 and features a gaming floor with 1,100 slot machines, including video poker, as well as electronic rou ...
in
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.


Racing career


Florida: Two-year-old season

In Florida, Lil E. Tee finished second in his first start and then won a 7-furlong maiden race. He was sold again, this time to W. Cal Partee, who shipped him to trainer Lynn S. Whiting at
Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States that hosts the annual Kentucky Derby. It opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was prominent in Kentucky for many years. The first ...
, where Lil E. Tee won a one-mile allowance race. Of his four starts at age two, the horse won twice and finished second twice.


Arkansas: Prep races

Racing in
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...
, at age three Lil E. Tee won the
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Jim Beam Stakes The Jeff Ruby Steaks (a homophone of the word Stakes, for commercial reasons) is a Grade III American thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds at a distance of a one and one-eighth miles on the synthetic track in late March at Turfway Park ...
and finished second by a neck to Pine Bluff in the
Arkansas Derby The Arkansas Derby is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. In 2004, t ...
, results that led to his appearance in the 1992 Kentucky Derby.


Kentucky Derby: The build-up

Lil E. Tee was ridden by jockey
Pat Day Patrick Alan "Pat" Day (born October 13, 1953, in Brush, Colorado) is a retired American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991 an ...
, who hadn't won a Derby in nine previous attempts. On a track rated as fast, the horse went off at odds of 17–1 in front of a record crowd that had come to see
European Horse of the Year The Cartier Racing Awards are awards in European horse racing, founded in 1991, and sponsored by Cartier SA, Cartier. The award winners are decided by points earned in group races (40%) plus the votes cast by British racing journalists (30%) and re ...
Arazi. The press had talked about little except Arazi since his dominating win in the previous October's
Breeders' Cup Juvenile The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup W ...
. The
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called him "''mythical and almost mystical''" and
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magazine said, "''Arazi is fast winning a reputation as the second coming of
Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who was the ninth winn ...
''."
Joe Hirsch Joe Hirsch (February 27, 1928 – January 9, 2009) was an American horse racing columnist and the founding president of the National Turf Writers Association. Biography He earned a degree in journalism from New York University, then served w ...
, a respected columnist with the New Jersey–based
Daily Racing Form The ''Daily Racing Form'' (DRF) (referred to as the ''Racing Form'' or "Form" and sometimes "telegraph" or "telly") is a tabloid newspaper founded in 1894 in Chicago, Illinois, by Frank Brunell. The paper publishes the past performances of rac ...
, wrote that Arazi was "''such an extraordinary animal that he makes other great horses look like hacks''". Arazi's jockey, Patrick Valenzuela, who had won the 1989 Derby aboard
Sunday Silence Sunday Silence (March 25, 1986 – August 19, 2002) was an United States, American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and Horse breeding#Terminology, sire. In 1989, he won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes but failed to complete the Triple Cr ...
, assured reporters that "''This race is over''." Fifteen years after his Breeders' Cup win, a
National Thoroughbred Racing Association The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) is a broad-based coalition of American horse racing interests consisting of leading thoroughbred racetracks, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with incr ...
(NTRA) 2006 article said that "Arazi turned in what many still consider to be the single-most spectacular performance in Breeders' Cup history."


Kentucky Derby: The race

Starting in post position #10, Lil E. Tee got off to a clean start in the 1992 Kentucky Derby and was in tenth place after half a mile. Arazi, who had started on the far outside in post position #17, made an explosive move.
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television announcer Dave Johnson exclaimed "''Arazi is flying''" as the colt went seven wide, sweeping past horse after horse to move into third place, tightly bunched with the leaders. Lil E. Tee followed Arazi, moving into 5th place. As they approached the home stretch, though, Arazi tired badly. Lil E. Tee made his move and soon caught the front-running Casual Lies to win the most prestigious race in America and $724,800.


Later career

After the Derby, Lil E. Tee was entered 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 ...
, the second leg of the American Triple Crown races. He finished 5th, five lengths behind winner Pine Bluff. Lil E. Tee then skipped 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 ...
after being diagnosed with a lung infection. On June 9, the colt's racing season ended when he underwent
arthroscopic surgery Arthroscopy (also called arthroscopic or keyhole surgery) is a minimally invasive surgery, surgical procedure on a joint in which an examination and sometimes treatment of damage is performed using an arthroscope, an endoscope that is inserted in ...
to remove bone chips from his front ankles. Recovered, in 1993 at age 4, Lil E. Tee won the Grade II Razorback Handicap. He also finished second in the
Oaklawn Handicap The Oaklawn Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in April at Oaklawn Park Race Track in Hot Springs, Arkansas. A Grade II event raced on dirt, since 1984 it has been contested over a distance of miles (9 furlongs). It use ...
. He was retired that year with a lifetime record of 7-4-1 from 13 starts and earnings of $1,437,506.


Race record


Stud career

Lil E. Tee stood at
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 * ...
at Old Frankfort Stud near
Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...
, until he was euthanized on March 18, 2009. Farm owner Jim Plemmons said the horse fell ill the month prior following an operation to repair an obstructed bowel. Lil E. Tee sired 20 stakes winners in total, with progeny earnings reaching $9.9 million. His best runners include multiple graded stakes winner Mula Gula and graded winner Jim'smrtee. Mula Gula currently stands stallion duties at Midas Hill Farm in Texas.


Pedigree


Bibliography

* John Eisenberg ''The Longest Shot: Lil E. Tee and the Kentucky Derby'' (1996)
University Press of Kentucky The University Press of Kentucky (UPK) is the scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and was organized in 1969 as successor to the University of Kentucky Press. The university had sponsored scholarly publication since 1943. In 194 ...

Old Frankfort Stud website

Archived copy of Old Frankfort Stud website
- Wayback Machine, January 9, 2014


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lil E. Tee 1989 racehorse births 2009 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Pennsylvania Racehorses trained in the United States Kentucky Derby winners Thoroughbred family 23-b