Cigar was the best horse in the last 30 years

[brianwspencer]

Originally Posted by Hail2Reason

For some reason on his radioshow Steve Byk doesn't want to give the horse the credit he deserves. If you look at what he did how can you argue he was a truly great horse. Nobody has done anything close to his 1995 season.

Career Highlights:
Undefeated in 1995, winning 10 of 10 starts, 8 of them Gr. I.
1995 Champion Handicap Male
1995 Horse of the Year
1996 Champion Handicap Male
1996 Horse of the Year
1996 Hwt Older Horse in UAE 9.5-11F
Carried 130 pounds to victory in the '96 Massachusetts Handicap.
Won 16 straight races from the Oct. 28, 1994 NYRA Mile through the July 13, 1996 Arlington Citation Challenge. Lost the 17th race, the Aug. 19, 1996 Pacific Classic (Gr. I) after engaging in a speed duel with Siphon, setting up a win by Dare and Go.
Cigar shares his 16 win streak with only one other North American runner in this century, Citation.
Won the inaugural running of the Dubai World Cup in 1996. Despite lacking a Gr. I status, it attracted the most accomplished (money earned) field in racing history to that point.
Won a total of 11 Gr. Is and the Dubai World Cup.
Retired as the leading North American money earner of all time with $9,999,813, a record which stands to this day.
Race Record

I don't know if I'd say the last 30 years, but he was certainly a great horse -- one of the very best I've ever been able to see.

However, I always tend to think of Skip Away as the best horse to run in America since I started following racing.