Mark Casse
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Mark E. Casse (born February 14, 1961) is a
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 trainer whose most notable horses include 2015 American champion turf mare Tepin and Canadian Horses of the Year Sealy Hill (2007), Uncaptured (2012), Lexie Lou (2014), Catch A Glimpse (2015) and Wonder Gadot. He has won thirteen Sovereign Awards for outstanding trainer in Canada and has been the leading trainer at
Woodbine Racetrack Woodbine Racetrack is a race track for Thoroughbred horse racing in the Etobicoke area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Owned by Woodbine Entertainment Group, Woodbine Racetrack manages and hosts Canada's most famous race, the King's Plate. The track ...
14 times. In 2019, he won his first American Classic with War of Will 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 ...
.


Background

Casse was born in
Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...
on February 14, 1961, to Norman Casse. He grew up 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 ...
where his father ran Cardinal Hill Farm and was one of the founders of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company. His brothers are John and Justin Casse, who are also involved in the racing industry. At age eight, Casse accompanied his father to the spring meet of the original Woodbine Racetrack. In 1973, father and son traveled to
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 ...
and saw
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 ...
win the 1973 Kentucky Derby. Casse's third wife, Tina, is the Direct of Operations for Casse Racing, a company they founded in 2002. Although they spend much of the year at Woodbine Racetrack in Canada, their home base is Moonshadow Farm in Florida.


Racing career

Casse started to run his father's training operation in 1976 at the age of 15 and received his training license in Massachusetts when he was 17. He received a Kentucky trainer's license at age 18 and won his first race at
Keeneland Keeneland Association, Inc. is an equine business based in Lexington, Kentucky. It includes two distinct divisions: the Keeneland Race Course, a Thoroughbred racing facility, and Keeneland Sales, a horse auction complex. It is also known for ...
with Joe’s Coming on April 14, 1979. His first stakes winner was Amalie, who won the 1979 Indian Maid at
Sportsman’s Park Sportsman's Park was the name of several former Major League Baseball Baseball park, ballpark structures in St. Louis, Missouri. All but one of these were located on the same piece of land, at the northwest corner of Grand Boulevard (St. Louis ...
. He won the trainer's title at the
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 ...
Spring meet of 1988, and also won four training titles at Turfway Park. He was Calumet Farm's private trainer for two years. In the 1990s, Casse became the private trainer of Harry Mangurian and ran Mockingbird Farm, which at the time had 900 horses in the Ocala area. Manguarian dispersed most of his stock in 1999 and 2000, and the farm was bought by
Eugene Melnyk Eugene Nestor Melnyk (May 27, 1959 – March 28, 2022) was a Canadian businessman, philanthropist, and owner, governor, and chairman of the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Ottawa Senators and the American Hockey League's Belleville Senators. He w ...
, who renamed it Winding Oaks and become one of Casse's majort clients. Casse officially moved his center of operations to
Woodbine Racetrack Woodbine Racetrack is a race track for Thoroughbred horse racing in the Etobicoke area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Owned by Woodbine Entertainment Group, Woodbine Racetrack manages and hosts Canada's most famous race, the King's Plate. The track ...
in 1998 though he had already been racing there for several years. Since moving to Canada, Casse has won a record nine Sovereign Awards as Canada's top trainer. In 1999, Casse trained his first Sovereign Award winning horse, Exciting Story, who was champion two year-old colt. Two years later, Exciting Story would also earn Casse his first Grade I stakes win, the
Metropolitan Handicap The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile", is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile (8 furl ...
, at odds of 56-1. The next year, Casse captured his first Woodbine training title with 69 wins. Among his stakes winners was Added Edge, who was named Canada’s champion two-year-old. Casse had developed a reputation for training good two-year-olds and selling them once they won, which kept him from winning most major races. This started to change around 2005 as Casse's client list started to grow. Casse earned his first Sovereign Award for outstanding trainer in 2005, and had his first
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 ...
starter, Seaside Retreat. The next year, his horses won eleven stakes races, a personal best, including the
Woodbine Oaks The Woodbine Oaks is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. Inaugurated in 1956, it is the premier event for Canadian-foaled three-year-old fillies and the first leg of the Canadian Triple Tiara ...
, a prestigious race for Canadian-bred three-year-old fillies. In 2007, Casse won his second Woodbine training title and second straight Sovereign Award. He trained his first
Canadian Horse of the Year The Canadian Horse of the Year is a thoroughbred horse racing honour given annually since 1951 by the Jockey Club of Canada. It is the most prestigious honour in Canadian thoroughbred horse racing. Part of the Sovereign Awards program since 1975, ...
, Sealy Hill, who won the Canadian Triple Tiara and several other stakes races. In 2008, Sealy Hill would finish second in the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf and was eventually inducted into 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 ...
. Casse earned his 1,000th win on August 9, 2008 at Woodbine with Laragh. In 2011, Casse won his fifth straight training title at Woodbine
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
with a record 119 victories, which was nearly double the number of wins compiled by the runner-up. Among them were 13 stakes victories including the
Grey Stakes The Grey Stakes is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the first week of October at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto. A Grade III, it is open to two-year-old horses and is raced on dirt at a distance of miles. Since 2006, the d ...
, in which Casse saddled the top three finishers. He also earned his first Grade I win since 2001 when Pool Play won the Stephen Foster Stakes at odds of 36-1. In 2012, Casse ranked 7th in North America by trainer earnings. Uncaptured became his second Canadian Horse of the Year when, at the age of two, he won the Clarendon, Vandal, and Swynford stakes at Woodbine and the
Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...
and Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs. On July 6, 2014, Casse scored his first victory in the
Queen's Plate The King's Plate (known as the Queen's Plate from 1860 to 1901 and 1952 to 2022) is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race and the oldest continuously run race in North America, having been founded in 1860. It is run at a distance of for a ma ...
, Canada's premier race, with filly Lexie Lou. She was later named Canadian Horse of the Year while Casse won his seventh Sovereign Award. Casse would finish the year ranked #6 in North America by earnings. In 2015, Casse scored his first two
Breeders' Cup The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Graded stakes race, Grade I Thoroughbred racing, Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was ...
wins, with Catch a Glimpse in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, and with Tepin in the
Breeders' Cup Mile The Breeders' Cup Mile is a conditions races, Grade 1 Weight for Age stakes race for thoroughbred racehorses three years old and up, run on a sod, grass course. It has been conducted annually as part of the Breeders' Cup, Breeders' Cup World C ...
. Tepin would be awarded the 2015 Eclipse Award for champion turf mare, while Catch A Glimpse was named the Canadian Horse of the Year. Unfortunately, a promising colt, Danzig Moon, who had finished fifth 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 ...
and was the favourite for the Queen's Plate, suffered a catastrophic breakdown during the Plate Trial. "If you knew why it happened, you could try to do it better or do it differently. So now we’ve got this fear and worry that it could happen again. It’s going to take a long time to be able to watch races because they (horses) are part of your family." That year, Casse was the #4 ranked trainer in North America by earnings. In 2016, Casse won several major stakes races with Tepin, including the prestigious
Queen Anne Stakes The Queen Anne Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and is scheduled to take p ...
at
Royal Ascot Ascot Racecourse is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, about 25 miles west of London. Ascot is used for thoroughbred horse racing, and it hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 races and three Gra ...
in England. Other major graded stakes winners included World Approval, Lexie Lou, Kaigun, Catch A Glimpse, Noble Bird and Pretty City Dancer. On May 14, he won his 2,000th race at Gulfstream Park, even though he himself was located at Woodbine at the time. "It's a great testimony to our team, which I'm very proud of," said Casse. At the 2016 Breeders' Cup,
Classic Empire Classic Empire (foaled March 21, 2014) is a retired American Thoroughbred race horse who was named the American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse of 2016 after winning the Breeders' Futurity Stakes and Breeders' Cup Juvenile. After several setba ...
established himself as a leading contender for the 2017 Kentucky Derby by winning the Juvenile. In 2016, Casse was inducted into 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 ...
. On November 19, 2020 at Gulfstream Park West, he registered his 3,000th win with his horse Souper Watson taking the win in Race 3.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Casse, Mark E. 1961 births American racehorse trainers Canadian Champion racehorse trainers Living people Sovereign Award winners Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees