Man O' War A Classic Thoroughbred Racehorse

By Author: Orlando Bray
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Man O' War was one of the greatest Thoroughbred racehorses of all time. The chestnut colt was born in 1917 by sire Fair Play and dam Mahubah. He won several major races throughout the late 1910s and 1920s. At the end of his racing career, he had won nearly $250,000 in purses.

Man O' War was owned and bred by August Belmont, Jr., the son of August Belmont, Sr., who financed the first Belmont Stakes. Man O' War got his name after his owner joined the Unites States Army at age 65 to serve during World War I. His wife named the new foal Man O' War in honor of her husband.

Unfortunately for the Belmont's, they had to sell Man O' War before his rise to fame. August Belmont arranged to sell most of the yearling crop of 1918 at the Saratoga yearling sale. He initially planned on keeping Man O' War, but he ended up including him in the lot and he was eventually sold at a final bid of $5,000 to Samuel D. Riddle.

Man O' War's first race was at Belmont Park on June 6, 1919. At the time, he was trained by Louis Feustel and ridden by Johnny Loftus. He entered the race as the favorite and he ended up winning by six lengths. ...
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Man O' War got a new rider when he became a three-year old. Loftus was denied a renewal of his jockey's license by the racing commission and was replaced by Clarence Kummer.

One thing missing from Man O' War's résumé is a win at the Kentucky Derby. Consequently, he also never won the U.S. Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. As a three-year-old, his owner did not enter him into the race because he didn't like racing in Kentucky and thought it was too early in the year for a young horse to run a mile and a quarter.

Man O' War went on to win the remaining legs of the Triple Crown. He set a Pimlico track record of 1:38-3/5 for a mile then slowed down for the final eighth of a mile to finish in 1:51-3/5 at the 1920 Preakness Stakes. He then won the 1 3/8 mile Belmont Stakes by 20 lengths, setting an American record with a time of 2:14.20. Sir Barton had set the record one year earlier, but Man O' War's time was three seconds better.

In 1920, Man O' War was so dominant that no one wanted to race against him. In addition to the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes, he won the Dwyer Stakes, the Travers Stakes, the Stuyvesant Handicap, and the Jockey Club Gold Cup. At the Lawrence Realization Stakes, no other horse was willing to go against him until Riddle's niece, Sarah Jefford's, entered a horse named Hoodwink. Man O' War went on to win by more than 100 lengths with a world-record 2:40-4/5 time for a 1 5/8 mile race.

Man O' War had a lot of successful offspring. They include American Flag, Crusader, and War Admiral. He died on November 1, 1947, at age 30 of a heart attack. He won 20 of the 21 races he entered and totaled $249,465 in purses.

AUTHOR:-
Orlando Bray writes reviews on various sporting events including the Kentucky Derby betting. In this piece of write up, the author highlights on online horse racing. The author also takes the readers thought on how to bet on horse racing.