Best horses of the 1980's by division

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

On the Line, I'd to this day still rate him as one fo the best five sprinters I've ever seen. Perhaps top three.

How do you think Melair would have compared with the other female sprinters?

[Hickory Hill Hoff]

How bout Gulch?

[Betsy]

Originally Posted by Hickory Hill Hoff

How bout Gulch?

I was thinking the same thing.......he was a terrific racehorse, and extremely versatile. The problem is that he spent most of his career not sprinting.

[Hickory Hill Hoff]

Originally Posted by Betsy

I was thinking the same thing.......he was a terrific racehorse, and extremely versatile. The problem is that he spent most of his career not sprinting.

Two-time Met Mile winner!

[Betsy]

Originally Posted by Hickory Hill Hoff

Two-time Met Mile winner!

I know! He was the first horse I ever loved (well, aside from those I never saw, like Slew, Man o'War and Phar Lap), so I have a special place in my heart for him. Jolley ran him long all the time; Lukas had the smarts to turn him back into a sprinter. That BC is remembered for Personal Ensign, but my true joy was Gulch winning that Sprint

[SCUDSBROTHER]

I do think Chinook Pass was the best sprinter of that decade.

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by SCUDSBROTHER

I do think Chinook Pass was the best sprinter of that decade.

Chinook Pass might have been - probably was - the fastest/quickest sprinter of the decade ... but he never won a single Graded Stakes race.

CP was 0-for-3 lifetime in Graded Stakes attempts.

The richest race he ever won - and by far - was the Longacres Mile.

[outofthebox]

Melair could really fly. I was in love with a 3yo filly named Ski Goggle who destroyed Princess Rooney in the Acorn i believe. She was soon hurt, and never appeared again.

[Indian Charlie]

Originally Posted by The Indomitable DrugS

How do you think Melair would have compared with the other female sprinters?

If you count 1 turn miles as a sprint, she'd have been untouchable.

By just about anyone.

[The Indomitable DrugS]

I'll include the 90's and this past decade into this. You'll now have fields of 12.

2-year-old male:

80's: Easy Goer, Devil's Bag, Chief's Crown, Grand Canyon
90's: Afternoon Deelites, Favorite Trick, Maria's Mon, Arazi
00's: War Pass, Macho Uno, Stevie Wonderboy, Street Sense


2-year-old female:

80's: Princess Rooney, Landaluce, Before Dawn, Althea
90's: Meadow Star, Silverbulletday, Flanders, Phone Chatter
00's: Tempera, Storm Flag Flying, Halfbrideld, You


3-year-old male:

80's: Sunday Silence, Easy Goer, Spend A Buck, Conquistador Cielo
90's: Holy Bull, Skip Away, Unbridled, Silver Charm
00's: Smarty Jones, Tiznow, Point Given, Bernardini


3-year-old female:

80's: Winning Colors, Genuine Risk, Mom's Command, Bold N' Determined
90's: Go For Wand, Silverbulletday, Serena's Song, Dance Smartly
00's: Rachel Alexandra, Rags To Riches, Xtra Heat, Surfside


Older male:

80's: Spectacular Bid, Alysheba, Ferdinand, Turkoman
90's: Skip Away, Cigar, Criminal Type, Formal Gold
00's: Ghostzapper, Mineshaft, Medaglia D' Oro, Congaree


Older female:

80's: Personal Ensign, Lady's Secret, Princess Rooney, Bayakoa
90's: Inside Information, Bayakoa, Sharp Cat, Paseana
00's: Zenyatta, Azeri, Riboletta, Sightseek


Turf male:

80's: John Henry, Manila, Theatrical, Steinlen
90's: Daylami, Lure, Kotashaan, Paradise Creek
00's: Fantastic Light, Leroidesanemeaux, Kitten's Joy, Conduit


Turf female:

80's: Miesque, All Along, Pebbles, Royal Heroine
90's: Flawlesssly, Ridgewood Pearl, Miss Alleged, Borgia
00's: Ouija Board, Goldikova, Banks Hill, Six Perfections


Sprint male:

80's: Groovy, Precisonist, Phone Trick, Smile
90's: Artax, Housebuster, Kona Gold, Reraise
00's: Kona Gold, Midnight Lute, Swept Overboard, Fabulous Strike


Sprint female:

80's: Gold Beauty, Very Subtle, Safely Kept, Pine Tree Lane
90's: Safely Kept, Soviet Problem, Mefera, Capote Belle
00's: Xtra Heat, Honest Lady, Indian Blessing, Madcap Escapade


It's amazing how there doesn't appear to be one huge standout among the horses in any division. Maybe Spectacular Bid over horses like Skip Away, Ghostzapper, Cigar, Alysheba... but that's about it.

[Indian Charlie]

You are seriously in need of help if you think SBD should be ahead of Lakeway, Inside Information and even Sardula.

Also, Gentlemen, on one of his good days, KILLS Criminal Type.

Barbaro absolutely is one of the best 3yos of the past decade.

Why no Uncle Mo for 2yos? 2010?

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

You are seriously in need of help if you think SBD should be ahead of Lakeway, Inside Information and even Sardula.

Also, Gentlemen, on one of his good days, KILLS Criminal Type.

Barbaro absolutely is one of the best 3yos of the past decade.

Why no Uncle Mo for 2yos? 2010?

Silverbulletday was an awesome 3-year-old filly through summer and with a hard campaign. Lakeway, II, and Sardula all were plauged with issues at age 3.

Gentlemen was outstanding - I suppose he wasn't retired soon enough, his brillance did decline and it got to the point where he was a DNF in the BC Classic - a race his owner paid a forture to supplament him into. Criminal Type slayed some dragons.

Barbaro's 3-year-old season doesn't hold a candle to horses like Bernardini, Point Given, and Tiznow. Yeah, Barbaro beat Great Point and Sharp Humor at GP - and he blew out a very weak Derby field in his only real impressive performance at age 3. The fact that the champion 3yo eclipse vote with Bernardini - which he didn't win - wasn't even that close should be telling.

Yes - no Uncle Mo beacuse he's 2010.

[RolloTomasi]

What were Forty Niner's numbers like at 2? IIRC, he lost his debut and won 5 or 6 straight, culminating with the Champagne.

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by RolloTomasi

What were Forty Niner's numbers like at 2? IIRC, he lost his debut and won 5 or 6 straight, culminating with the Champagne.

Pretty solid - he was one I considered. Not going to the West Coast for the Breeders Cup hurt his case. He actually wasn't favored in a 2yo stakes race until his final start - when he took the '87 Breeders Futurity by a nose over Hey Pat at 2/5.

I honestly remember very little from 80's racing mostly outside of SS and EG. You had a lot of cool 2yo's in that '89 year. Grand Canyon was insane in his two races after losing the BC in a race which he arguably was best in. Summer Squall - I was very surprised how good he was at age 2. Champagne For Ashley had a freaky form and real good numbers - but facing 80's NY Breds really dampens any idea that he was a monster.

Easy Goer ran a 118 Beyer in the Champagne at age 2. The horse who was 3rd by almost 20 lengths came back and won a Grade 1 500K 2yo stakes race next time out at 15/1. Is It True got thumped in 2nd - and he won the BC Juvie next out. I think it's easy to forgive EG's Breeders Cup defeat when you consider by far his worst number at age 3 came at CD over a similar wet racetrack.

[Indian Charlie]

Originally Posted by The Indomitable DrugS

Barbaro's 3-year-old season doesn't hold a candle to horses like Bernardini, Point Given, and Tiznow. Yeah, Barbaro beat Great Point and Sharp Humor at GP - and he blew out a very weak Derby field in his only real impressive performance at age 3. The fact that the champion 3yo eclipse vote with Bernardini - which he didn't win - wasn't even that close should be telling.

Did you really just use an Eclipse vote to justify your position?

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

Did you really just use an Eclipse vote to justify your position?

Bernardini was a better 3yo than Barbaro. This can't be disputed.

[Sightseek]

Originally Posted by The Indomitable DrugS

Barbaro's 3-year-old season doesn't hold a candle to horses like Bernardini, Point Given, and Tiznow. Yeah, Barbaro beat Great Point and Sharp Humor at GP - and he blew out a very weak Derby field in his only real impressive performance at age 3. The fact that the champion 3yo eclipse vote with Bernardini - which he didn't win - wasn't even that close should be telling.

Yes - no Uncle Mo beacuse he's 2010.

That was a Hall of Fame field compared to the last few Derbies!

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by Sightseek

That was a Hall of Fame field compared to the last few Derbies!

I don't think Steppenwolfer and Jazil ever got through their alw conditions... but yeah, a few recent Derby fields have really sucked.

[CSC]

Cesario, her American Oaks was one of the best performances I can remember by a 3 yr old or female turf horse.

[DaTruth]

As the advocate for Fair Grounds based runners, I have to suggest Blushing KD for the 3yo fillies of the 1990s. She was a terror for the first half of 1997 before breaking down while prepping for the Haskell.