Star Standard (April 22, 1992 – December 9, 1997) was a millionaire 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. Bred 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 ...

by Highclere, Inc. & Louis Roussel III and raced under the William Condren banner as his owner. He was sired by top stallion Risen Star, who in turn was a son 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 ...

. His dam was Hoist Emy's Flag daughter of graded stakes winner

Hoist The Flag Hoist The Flag (1968–1980) was an American Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. He was the outstanding two-year-old colt in the United States in 1970 when his wins included the Cowdin Stakes. Hoist The Flag was being prepared for the Triple Crown ...

. He finished racing with a record of 7–4–3 in 25 starts with career earnings of $1,121,512. Star Standard was best known for his win in the grade one

Pimlico Special The Pimlico Special is a Grade 3 American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles ( furlongs) held at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland in mid May. The race currently offers a purse of $250,000. ...

and his runner-up finish in the grade one

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 ...

.Pedigree Online, Thoroughbred Databas

Two-year-old season

Star Standard got a late start to his racing career and only raced twice as a two-year-old and only won a maiden special weight race on his second attempt.

Three-year-old season

As a three-year-old, Star Standard began improving in the spring of 1995. After a ninth-place finish to

Thunder Gulch Thunder Gulch (May 23, 1992 – March 19, 2018) was a Eclipse Award, Champion United States, American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for his wins in the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes in 1995, which earned him the title of Eclipse Awar ...

, Suave Prospect, and Mecke in the

Florida Derby The Florida Derby is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses held annually at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Since 2005, it has been run five weeks before the Kentucky Derby, which is held on the first Saturd ...

he shipped to Kentucky. With two weeks until 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 ...

, Zito decided to pass on that race and instead run in the second jewel of the Triple Crown, 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 ...

. Star Standard was bumped in the $500,000 Preakness coming out of the gate. He was pushed back into the rear tier, but jockey

Chris McCarron Christopher John McCarron (born March 27, 1955, Boston, Massachusetts) is a retired American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He mounted his first horse ever at 16.5 years old and was racing professionally by 18. At only 19 years ...

then charged him up to the leader, Mystery Storm. At the 5/16th pole, he put a head in front while splitting rivals. He held on well until the final sixteenth and weakened to finish fourth. In the Belmont Stakes, Star Standard finished second to Dual Classic winner Thunder Gulch. In the late summer and early fall of the year, Zito decided to run Star Standard against older horses in two races. In the first, he finished second in September to

Cigar A cigar is a rolled bundle of dried and Fermentation, fermented tobacco leaves made to be Tobacco smoking, smoked. Cigars are produced in a variety of sizes and shapes. Since the 20th century, almost all cigars are made of three distinct comp ...

in the grade one

Woodward Stakes The Woodward Stakes is an American Grade Il stakes race and is one of the premier races for older thoroughbred horses in the United States. It is named for prominent racehorse owner William Woodward. The race was first run in 1954 at Aqueduct Ra ...

Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, Saratoga Springs, New York (state), New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting v ...

. In the second, Cigar again dominated the field in the grade one

Jockey Club Gold Cup The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a thoroughbred flat race, held at the Saratoga Race Course in the United States, that is open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It has traditionally been the main event of the fal ...

in October as Star Standard ran third to him and Unaccounted For.

Four-year-old season

At the beginning of his four-year-old season in 1996, Star Standard ran in the grade one

Gulfstream Park Handicap The Gulfstream Park Mile Stakes (formerly known as the Gulfstream Park Handicap) is a race for thoroughbred horses run at Gulfstream Park each year. The race is open to horses age four and up, willing to race one mile on the dirt. A Grade II event ...

, leading almost the entire race. Near the wire, the gray Wekiva Springs wore him down to win by a half length. In the $600,000 grade one

Handicap at "Old Hilltop" in

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 ...

, Star Standard broke from gate four and rushed straight to the lead under 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 ...

. He was the longest shot in the short field at

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 ...

at 6–1. Going into the far turn, Star Standard had led every step of the way in the first three quarters of a mile. At the top of the stretch, Key of Luck, Geri, and Wekiva Springs all made a bid at the leader but failed to gain even terms. Star Standard won by a length over Key of Luck. Geri finished almost seven lengths back in third, and 4-5 favorite Wekiva Springs was fourth, nine lengths back. On October 22, 1997, Star Standard was pulled off of the race track during an allowance race at Keeneland. Injuries that had kept him out of racing for a year had taken a more life-threatening turn to laminitis, which his grandfather Secretariat was euthanized for. Initially, treatments appeared to be working, but by early December, he had stopped responding to treatments and could not stand. The decision was made to euthanize him on the morning of December 9.

References

{{reflist 1992 racehorse births 1997 racehorse deaths Thoroughbred family A1 Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States