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Originally Posted by Bold Brooklynite
Let's take them one-by-one ...
Affirmed tailed off at the end of his 3YO season ... he lost his last two races ... to be sure to a great 4YO and with a slipped saddle ... but losses nonetheless.
The 1954 colt crop was the greatest ever ... and I started following thoroughbred racing in 1957 because of them ... but all of those great horses had significant limitations as 3YOS ... Bold Ruler wouldn't rate and could be beaten by throwing a rabbit at him ... Gallant Man needed to close off a fast pace and barely managed to beat Bureaucracy in the Travers and Dedicate in the Nassau County when the pace was slow. Both Bold Ruler and Gallant Man were defeated at scale weight by the older Dedicate in the Woodward. And Round Table didn't come close to winning his two most important races as a 3YO ... the Kentucky Derby and the Trenton Handicap.
War Admiral was sensational as a 3YO ... but he didn't set track records or win by the open lengths that Bernardini has.
Count Fleet was retired after the Belmont Stakes and never had to face a really good horse. He beat up regularly on Blue Swords ... and there was virtually nothing behind that one. This was during the depths of WWII ... when it looked like Germany and Japan were invincible ... and most everyone ... including owners, trainers, and jockeys ... were putting their time into the war effort ... not horse racing.
Look at the actual records ... and you'll agree that IF Bernardini puts in another exceptional race in the BC Classic ... his 3YO record will be as good as any but the very, very best.
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---war admiral broke the belmont stakes record set 17 years prior by his old man, and equaled the american record for that distance--and this after grabbing a quarter leaving the gate. he was a perfect 8 for 8 that year.
then there's damascus, winner of the race of the century, as a three year old, over buckpasser and dr fager. all three are inside the top 20 racehorses of the 20th century. he also won the travers by 22 lengths, tying the track record with buckpasser!
count fleet may not have had competition, so he raced record books and the clock. his 25 length victory in the belmont was surpassed only by secretariats, and he set a stakes record in that race to boot.