Lookin At Lucky (foaled May 27, 2007 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 ...

) is a champion 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 ...

who won the 2010 Preakness Stakes. He was the 2009 Champion Two-Year-Old and 2010 Champion Three-Year-Old, becoming the first horse in 32 years to win these awards.

Background

Sired by Smart Strike, a half brother to Canadian Triple Crown Winner Dance Smartly, his dam, Private Feeling, was sired by Belong To Me by the North American Leading Sire of 1993, Danzig.''The Blood-Horse'', May 17, 2010
/ref> Bred by Gulf Coast Farms, Lookin At Lucky was bought back as a yearling for $35,000 at the 2008 Keeneland September Sale. After working 1/8 of a mile in 10 seconds, Lookin at Lucky was bought by popular trainer Bob Baffert at the 2009 Keeneland April Sale for $475,000. Lookin At Lucky raced for owners Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman.

2009: Two-Year-Old Season

Lookin At Lucky broke his maiden at the Cushion Track at Hollywood Park on July 11, going 6 furlongs. He followed up this win in the Grade 2

Best Pal Stakes The Best Pal Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds over a distance of six furlongs on the dirt track scheduled annually in August at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The event currently carries a purse ...

Del Mar Racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is an event venue in Del Mar, California. It hosts the annual San Diego County Fair. The venue sits on a property along the Pacific Ocean coastline. It includes the Del Mar Racetrack, built in 1936 by the Del Mar Thoroug ...

. Ridden by Garrett Gomez, he finished the furlongs in a time of 1:16.06. His next start was the Del Mar Futurity which he won in final time of 1:22.85. Lookin At Lucky solidified his entrance into the

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 ...

by winning the Grade One Norfolk Stakes with final time of 1:43.11 in a full field of 12. Going off as the favorite from post 13, Lookin At Lucky had a difficult trip and finished second by a head behind the long shot

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an winner,

Vale of York The Vale of York is an area of flat land in the northeast of England. The vale is a major agricultural area and serves as the main north–south transport corridor for Northern England. The Vale of York is a broad area of flat land in northe ...

in the

. On December 19, Lookin At Lucky sealed

American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when the ''Daily Racing F ...

honors with a win over chief rival Noble's Promise in the CashCall Futurity.

2010: Three-Year-Old Season

On March 13, Lookin At Lucky made his three-year-old debut at

Oaklawn Park Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort, formerly Oaklawn Park Race Track, is an American thoroughbred racetrack and casino in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is the home to "The Racing Festival of the South", a four-day series of races that concludes with the ...

with a win in the Rebel Stakes. He won by a head over arch-rival Noble's Promise, even though he stumbled badly during the run down the backstretch. On April 3, he had a horrendous trip under Garrett Gomez in the

Santa Anita Derby The Santa Anita Derby is an American Grade 1 thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run each April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is currently run at a distance of miles on the dirt and carries a purse of . It is one of t ...

. Bumped, jostled, and virtually ridden into the fence, Lookin At Lucky finished third. Going into the 2010 Kentucky Derby, Lookin At Lucky was made the favorite after the scratch of Eskendereya. Drawing the number one inside post, he was pinned to the rail and had nowhere to go until a late run to wind up sixth, making it his first off-the-board finish. After a disappointing

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 ...

finish, trainer Bob Baffert turned to young jockey Martin Garcia and fired Garrett Gomez after three consecutive races where the veteran jockey could not keep the horse out of trouble. On May 15, Garcia rode Lookin At Lucky to a win in the 135th running of 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 ...

Pimlico Race Course Pimlico Race Course is a thoroughbred horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of O ...

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

. Lookin At Lucky went off as the 2–1 second choice and paid $6.80 to win in a time of 1:55.47, holding off pacesetter First Dude and the late-charging Jackson Bend. Martin Garcia rode Lookin At Lucky again in the Haskell Invitational. The 6-5 favorite, he broke a bit awkwardly, but Garcia steadied him and positioned him three wide on the first turn. Entering the far turn while still 3 paths wide, he moved past his competitors, winning the race by four lengths over upcoming Trappe Shot, followed by First Dude and Super Saver, the

winner. He received a career-best 105

Beyer Speed Figure The Beyer Speed Figure is a system for rating the performance of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America designed in the early 1970s by Andrew Beyer, the syndicated horse racing columnist for The Washington Post. First published in book form in ...

for the most dominant performance of his career. Lookin at Lucky developed an illness after the Haskell and missed a month of training. Regrouping, Baffert pointed his star toward the Indiana Derby, held at small

Hoosier Park Harrah's Hoosier Park Racing & Casino is a racino including a standardbred racetrack located in Anderson, Indiana, approximately 30 miles northeast of Indianapolis. It is owned and operated by Eldorado Resorts, Caesars Entertainment. The facility ...

. Lookin At Lucky drew post position 6 in a field of nine horses and became the overwhelming favorite at odds of 2–5. He broke well but fell back to last early in the race and around the first turn. Still in eighth place on the backstretch, Lookin At Lucky came five-wide around the far turn, caught the leader in late home-stretch and won by 1 lengths. He earned a 103

for his performance. After his win in the Indiana Derby, Baffert pointed the horse toward the 27th running of the Breeders' Cup Classic. Lookin At Lucky trained well but was compromised by a "minor infection and a cough" a week before the race. "I had to treat him with antibiotics, and sometimes that's hard on a horses system," Baffert said. Lookin At Lucky was healthy for the race, but was placed farther back than usual early and finished fourth.

Stud career

In November 2010, Lookin At Lucky was purchased by

Coolmore Stud Coolmore Stud, in Fethard, County Tipperary, Ireland, is the headquarters of one of the world's largest breeding operation of thoroughbred racehorses. Through its racing arm, Ballydoyle, Coolmore also has raced many classic winners and champio ...

and retired. He then entered stud at Coolmore's Ashford Stud near

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 10,534 according to 2024 ce ...

. His initial stud fee was set at $35,000. Lookin At Lucky's first foal was born in January 2012 at Royal Pegasus Farm in Lexington, Kentucky. The foal, a dark bay filly, was out of the

Storm Cat Storm Cat (February 27, 1983 – April 24, 2013) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and stallion whose breeding fee during the peak of his stud career was $500,000, the highest in North America at the time. He was the leading sire in North A ...

mare Awesome. Lookin At Lucky was represented by his first winner in May 2014 when filly Lucky'stormwarning won a maiden race at

Gulfstream Park Gulfstream Park is a Thoroughbred racing, Thoroughbred horse race track, casino and outdoor entertainment and shopping destination in Hallandale Beach, Florida, Hallandale Beach, Florida, United States. It is among the most important venues for ...

. His first stakes winner came in August 2014 when colt Four Leaf Chief won the Louisiana Cup Juvenile Stakes at Louisiana Downs. He currently serves as a "shuttle stallion", traveling to Coolmore's Australian operations during the Southern Hemisphere breeding season. In 2012, Lookin At Lucky began shuttling to

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

to stand at Haras Paso Nevado, a farm near

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

. He shuttled to Chile alongside fellow Ashford stallion Scat Daddy.

Notable Progeny

Lookin At Lucky's most notable progeny includes:

United States (Northern Hemisphere)

* Accelerate: 2018 Horse of the Year finalist and champion older dirt male ( Santa Anita Handicap, Gold Cup at Santa Anita, Pacific Classic, Awesome Again Stakes, Breeders' Cup Classic) *

Country House image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

: Winner of the 2019 Kentucky Derby * Madefromlucky: Winner of the Peter Pan Stakes, West Virginia Derby, Greenwood Cup Stakes, and Stakes. * Dr. Dorr: Winner of the

Californian Stakes The Californian Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in late April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California (relocated from the now closed Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California). The Grade II event is open to ho ...

and Gr.I-placed. * Breaking Lucky: Winner of the Seagram Cup Stakes and Prince of Wales Stakes, multiple Gr.I placed. * Lucky Player: Winner of the Iroquois Stakes. * Lookin At Lee: Won Ellis Park Juvenile Stakes, runner-up in 2017 Kentucky Derby. * Money Multiplier:Winner of the Monmouth Stakes, multiple Gr.I-placed. * Diamond Oops: Winner of the Smile Sprint Stakes, multiple Gr.I-placed. * Four Leaf Chief: Multiple stakes winner * Good Luck Gus: Multiple stakes winner * Protective Shield: Multiple stakes winner Lookin At Lucky has also sired stakes winners and graded stakes placed runners Spider's Alibi, Linda's Luck, La Piba, One Lucky Dane, Maybellene, Giuseppe the Great, Dolphus, and Summer Luck.

Chile (Southern Hemisphere)

* Wow Cat (CHI): Winner of the Gran Criterium, Cl Tanteo de Potranca, Mil Guineas (all CHI-G1), and Cl Jose Saavedra Baeza (CHI-G3). Also won the Gr. 1 Beldame Stakes in the US. * Kurilov (CHI): Winner of the GP Hipodromo Chile (CHI-G1) * Conquer (CHI): Winner of the Cl Alberto Vial Infante (CHI-G1) * Full of Luck (CHI): Winner of the El Derby (CHI-G1) and Cl Criadores Machos, GP Coronacion, Cl Otono (CHI-G2) * Artigal (CHI): Winner of the Hugo Bourchier (CHI-G1) and Gran Handicap de Chile (CHI-G3) * Tinku (CHI): Winner of the Cl Juan S. Jackson (CHI-G2) * Luckita (CHI): Winner of the Cl Haras de Chile (CHI-G2) * Lucky Sisi (CHI): Winner of the GP Criadores (CHI-G2) * Jacare (CHI): Winner of the Cl Alvaro Covarrubias (CHI-G3) * Dulce Locura (CHI): WInner of the En Barbecho

Pedigree

References

Lookin At Lucky's pedigree and racing stats

Lookin At Lucky at Coolmore Stud
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lookin At Lucky 2007 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Eclipse Award winners Thoroughbred family 9-f