Pyro (foaled on February 19, 2005 in Kentucky) is an American
Thoroughbred Racehorse
Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, 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 basic pr ...
and
sire
Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French.
The words "sire" a ...
. His sire is
Pulpit
A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...
, a son of the 1992
Eclipse Award Winner for
American Horse of the Year
The American Award for 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 sanction the various awards, "Hor ...
,
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 ...
. His dam is the mare Wild Vision, sired by the 1984
Breeders' Cup Classic winner,
Wild Again.
Racing Career (2007)
At age two Pyro won an allowance race by a nose and notably ran second to
War Pass in the
Grade 1 Champagne Stakes at
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905.
It is operated by the non-profit New York Racin ...
in
Elmont, New York and in the
Breeders' Cup Juvenile at
Monmouth Park in
Oceanport, New Jersey.
Racing Career (2008)
At age three, he made a very impressive debut in the
Risen Star Stakes at the
Fair Grounds Race Course in
New Orleans, Louisiana. In a ten-horse race marked by a very slow pace, Pyro was last at the top of the stretch but moved between three horses and, as the track announcer said, he was "coming like a rocket" when he passed the rest of the field and won the 1 1/16 miles Risen Star Stakes by two lengths. The
Daily Racing Form said: "His rally to win the Risen Star Stakes at the Fair Grounds in February was so phenomenal that he evoked comparisons to the legendary
Silky Sullivan."
On March 8, Pyro won the
Grade 2 Grade 2 may refer to:
* Grade 2, the second year of primary education.
* Grade 2 horse races, the second tier in worldwide horse racing.
* Grade 2, the English punk band.
Grade II may refer to:
* Grade II listed buildings that are of special inter ...
Louisiana Derby at the Fair Grounds.
On April 12, Pyro finished a distant 10th, beaten by 39 lengths in the
Blue Grass Stakes at
Keeneland Race Course in
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...
. Pyro might have disliked the
Polytrack at Keeneland, as opposed to conventional dirt tracks where he had never finished a race worse than third.
On May 3, he finished 8th in the
2008 Kentucky Derby
The 2008 Kentucky Derby was the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 3, 2008 with 157,770 in attendance, the second largest in Derby history.[Northern Dancer Stakes
The Northern Dancer Stakes is a discontinued American Thoroughbred horse race that was held annually in mid-June at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. It was last run in 2010 with a purse of $125,000.
Named in honor of the horse Northern Da ...]
, winning decisively against a top-notch field. In order: My Pal Charlie, Visionaire (12th in the Kentucky Derby), Recapturetheglory (5th in the Derby), Texas Wildcatter, and Unbridled Vicar.
On July 27, he came in a late charge to take second to
Macho Again, (runner up in the
Preakness Stakes), in the Grade II
Jim Dandy Stakes at
Saratoga Race Course. Pyro placed second by 1/2 length.
On August 23, he made a late closing finish to finish behind
Colonel John and Mambo in Seattle in the
Travers Stakes.
Then he was prepped for the
Breeders Cup at Santa Anita to run in the Dirt Mile. It was well known that the synthetic track at
Santa Anita was far from being the poly-track at Keenland. Nevertheless, it was obviously not his day and he raced way behind the leaders and never made a late move.
In his first race in 2009 after a long lay-off, he took the Grade 1, 7 furlong
Forego Stakes
The Forego Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for horses four years old and older over the distance of seven furlongs on the dirt, scheduled annually in August at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. The event ...
against grade 1 winning sprint horse
Kodiak Kowboy.
Stud career
Pyro was retired to stud in 2010 and currently stands at the Darley Japan Stallion Complex for a fee of 2,000,000
yen.
References
{{reflist
Pyro's pedigree and partial racing statsNTRA article and video of Pyro's win in the 2007 Risen Star Stakes
2005 racehorse births
Thoroughbred family 8-d
Racehorses bred in Kentucky
Racehorses trained in the United States
Racehorses trained in the United Arab Emirates