Whose was/is the best?

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

Also, SB didn't win the only start at 12 furlongs that he ever had because he was sore. No horse can win over 12 furlongs if they had a safety pin stuck in their hoof the night before. Not even Secretariat.

Also BB, SB actually set a new track record in the Meadowlands Cup at the end of his three year old season too.

Spectacular Bid also raced at 12f in the 1979 Jockey Club Gold Cup ... another race which he lost. There were no reports of wandering safety pins that day.

In 1979 the Meadowlands was a brand new track ... and new track records were set virtually every night. The 10f record set by Spectacular Bid was at a distance which had only been run once before in the track's history. That's another "oddball" circumstance.

[kentuckyrosesinmay]

Originally Posted by Bold Brooklynite

Spectacular Bid also raced at 12f in the 1979 Jockey Club Gold Cup ... another race which he lost. There were no reports of wandering safety pins that day.

In 1979 the Meadowlands was a brand new track ... and new track records were set virtually every night. The 10f record set by Spectacular Bid was at a distance which had only been run once before in the track's history. That's another "oddball" circumstance.

Well, you said he only set one track record in his three year old year and were mistaken so I pointed it out.

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

Well, you said he only set one track record in his three year old year and were mistaken so I pointed it out.

You're correct ... I overlooked it because I've always discounted it.

[kentuckyrosesinmay]

Originally Posted by Bold Brooklynite

Spectacular Bid also raced at 12f in the 1979 Jockey Club Gold Cup ... another race which he lost. There were no reports of wandering safety pins that day.

In 1979 the Meadowlands was a brand new track ... and new track records were set virtually every night. The 10f record set by Spectacular Bid was at a distance which had only been run once before in the track's history. That's another "oddball" circumstance.

He lost in 1979 against the great Affirmed who was an amazing horse and also a four year old at the time. So Spectacular Bid was a three year old racing one of racing's greatest at a time when Affirmed was unbeatable. He won six grade Is that year and never lost again after the jockey switch from Cauthen to Laffit. Spectacular Bid was gallant in defeat in the Jocky Club Gold Cup.

[dr. fager]

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

He lost in 1979 against the great Affirmed who was an amazing horse and also a four year old at the time. So Spectacular Bid was a three year old racing one of racing's greatest at a time when Affirmed was unbeatable. He won six grade Is that year and never lost again after the jockey switch from Cauthen to Laffit. Spectacular Bid was gallant in defeat in the Jocky Club Gold Cup.

And Affirmed got beat as a 3 year old by Seattle Slew....see why this just runs people in circles? Where's that leave them?

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

He lost in 1979 against the great Affirmed who was an amazing horse and also a four year old at the time. So Spectacular Bid was a three year old racing one of racing's greatest at a time when Affirmed was unbeatable. He won six grade Is that year and never lost again after the jockey switch from Cauthen to Laffit. Spectacular Bid was gallant in defeat in the Jocky Club Gold Cup.

All true ...

... and that only reinforces my point about comparing what Spectacular Bid did as a 4YO ... to what Secretariat did as a 3YO ... which is what another poster is prepared to do ... and then use it to make incorrect inferences.

[miraja2]

Originally Posted by Bold Brooklynite

All true ...

... and that only reinforces my point about comparing what Spectacular Bid did as a 4YO ... to what Secretariat did as a 3YO ... which is what another poster is prepared to do ... and then use it to make incorrect inferences.

This is exactly right. It is basically impossible to compare the two horses' overall careers because the Bid ran at 4 and Big Red did not. They are both so great that any comparison of their 2 and 3 year old campaigns ends up splitting hairs to some degree (as this thread demonstrates) but I am in 100%agreement with Bold Brooklynite on this one.
In my opinion, along with the points that BB has already made, is the fact that in the three biggest races in the sport, Big Red's performance was better than the Bid's in all three, and Sec was running against Sham who was, in my opinion, better than ANY of the 3yo that the Bid competed against.
Don't get me wrong the Bid was one of the all time bests. I would definitely have him in the top 5 horses of the last 50 years, but he was simply not better than Big Red.
If you want to compare a horse favorably to Secretariat based on their 2yo and 3yo campaigns you would have better luck with Citation than with the Bid.

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by miraja2

This is exactly right. It is basically impossible to compare the two horses' overall careers because the Bid ran at 4 and Big Red did not. They are both so great that any comparison of their 2 and 3 year old campaigns ends up splitting hairs to some degree (as this thread demonstrates) but I am in 100%agreement with Bold Brooklynite on this one.
In my opinion, along with the points that BB has already made, is the fact that in the three biggest races in the sport, Big Red's performance was better than the Bid's in all three, and Sec was running against Sham who was, in my opinion, better than ANY of the 3yo that the Bid competed against.
Don't get me wrong the Bid was one of the all time bests. I would definitely have him in the top 5 horses of the last 50 years, but he was simply not better than Big Red.
If you want to compare a horse favorably to Secretariat based on their 2yo and 3yo campaigns you would have better luck with Citation than with the Bid.

I agree, Citation should never be left out of any discussion of top horses, while I rank him 4th, it was pretty much a coin flip between him and Ribot (#3) for me.

Originally Posted by miraja2

Sec was running against Sham who was, in my opinion, better than ANY of the 3yo that the Bid competed against.

If ... God forbid ... there were no Secretariat ...

... Sham wins the Kentucky Derby by eight lengths ... breaking or equaling the track record ... then wins the Preakness by eight lengths ... again breaking or equaling the track record ... and then wins the Belmont Stakes by 18 lengths ... breaking or equaling a third track record ...

... becoming the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years ... and hailed by all as the superhorse of the century.

Poor Sham .. what a bad year he chose to be born.

[randallscott35]

Originally Posted by Bold Brooklynite

If ... God forbid ... there were no Secretariat ...

... Sham wins the Kentucky Derby by eight lengths ... breaking or equaling the track record ... then wins the Preakness by eight lengths ... again breaking or equaling the track record ... and then wins the Belmont Stakes by 18 lengths ... breaking or equaling a third track record ...

... becoming the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years ... and hailed by all as the superhorse of the century.

Poor Sham .. what a bad year he chose to be born.

Are we rewriting history here, Sham finished last in the Belmont. How would he win by 18.? LOL

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by randallscott35

Are we rewriting history here, Sham finished last in the Belmont. How would he win by 18.? LOL

I agree totally with BB here...come now Randy, you trip handicap don't you?? Sham was by far the best mere horse in the race, only the god of all horses was better! Sham had run two excellent races, the Derby with a mouthful of blood throughout only to watch Secretariat grow smaller and smaller in front of him, Sham's connections made the only choice they could, they decided to take the race to Big Red in the Belmont. They would send Sham and play "catch me if you can"...unfortunately, the Great Horse decided he felt like showing speed that day, you can't run the first 6 furlongs in 1:09.4 and possibly finish a 12 furlong race!! Unless you are Secretariat of course! Sham ran out of gas, or maybe Secretariat finally simply broke his heart midway on the backstretch and struggled home last...who wouldn't?? Without Secretariat in the race, Sham would have opened up a huge lead while running non-suicidal fractions and had plenty left to the line...this was a great horse in his own right! He simply had the worst timing in thoroughbred history!! I think enough of him to rank him #39...most any other year, he wins the TC!

[miraja2]

Originally Posted by randallscott35

Are we rewriting history here, Sham finished last in the Belmont. How would he win by 18.? LOL

Well now we are REALLY speculating, but I think it is fairly reasonable to argue that Sham would have won the Belmont if Big Red had not been there.
Sham would not have been running balls out for the first 6f in a desperate attempt to keep up with Secretariat, and therefore would not have been completely fried at the end of the race. Of course this is IMPOSSIBLE to know for sure, but I think BB's claim that Sham would have won the Belmont is not necessarily wrong just because Sham finished 4th.
The fact remains that he was better than any 3yo that the Bid faced in '79.

Originally Posted by randallscott35

Are we rewriting history here, Sham finished last in the Belmont. How would he win by 18.? LOL

If you have a little patience ... I'll explain it to you.

What actually happened: Pancho Martin was/is one of the greatest trainers ever ... a deserving Hall Of Famer. He knew exactly what he had in Sham ... a really super race horse. The first time the two horses met ... in the Wood Memorial ... Sham finished ahead of Secretariat in a very weird race won by Secretariat's second-tier stablemate Angle Light. Pancho knew Sham hadn't run anywhere near his best that day ... and when Sham trained brilliantly for the Kentucky Derby ... Pancho knew that he had a horse who would run faster than any horse had ever run in that race before. And he was right ... Sham ran faster than any horse had ever run in the Kentucky Derrby prior to 1973 ... finishing eight lengths ahead of Our Native and Forego ... but Secretariat ran even faster ... defeating Sham by 2.5 lengths. Stunned ... Pancho ran Sham back in the Preakness ... and the exact same thing happened. Sham beat Our Native by eight lengths and broke or equalled the existing track record ... but still finished 2.5 lengths behind Secretariat. Pancho was even more stunned ... how could this super horse ... whom he had trained to perfection ... run faster than any horse had ever run a Derby or Preakness before ... and still lose by open lengths? For the Belmont Stakes ... Pancho instructed Laffit Pincay to throw all caution to the wind ... just gun Sham straight from the gate and go as fast and far as he could. Pincay gunned Sham ... and they ran an unheard-of 1:09.4 for the first 6f of the 12f Belmont ... a suicidal pace which no horse could possibly withstand. No horse except one. Sham showed his "humanity" ... and tired badly coming around the turn ... but the other horse ... who had gone nose-to-nose with him at the suicidal pace ... just kept going and going and going ... until he was almost completely out of sight.

Now ... let's try to figure out what might have happened in the Belmont Stakes ... if there were no Secretariat to get Pancho so frustrated. (Stay with this because there are some calculations involved.)

What might have happened: The Kentucky Derby and Preakness results were amazingly identical ... in both races Secretariat defeated Sham by 2.5 lengths and Sham defeated Our Native by 8 lengths ... and the final time broke the previous track record by 3/5 of a second ... with Sham either slightly beating or equaling the previous track record. Our Native wasn't in the Belmont ... but My Gallant was. Our Native and My Gallant were practically clones ... they finished along side each other three times in their careers. So it's pretty safe to use My Gallant as a proxy for Our Native. So ... in both the Derby and Preakness ... Secretariat defeated Sham by 2.5 lengths and Our Native by 10.5 lengths. Thus Sham was 24% of the distance between Secretariat and Our Native (2.5 divided by 10.5) in both races. In the Belmont Stakes ... My Gallant finished 31 lengths behind Secretariat. If Sham had run his normal race ... he would theoretically have been 24% of that behind where Secretariat would have been ... or 7.5 lengths (24% of 31). However ... becaue the Belmont is 2f longer than the Derby or Preakness ... and Secretariat had the most stamina of any horse who ever lived ... I believe the margin would have been 5 to 6 lengths greater than just 7.5 lengths ... which would put Sham about 13 lengths behind where Secretariat would have been ... and 18 lengths ahead of My Gallant. This also works out well from a time standpoint ... because if Sham finished 13 lengths slower than Secretariat ... he would have shaded or equalled the previous track record ... just as he had in both the Derby and Preakness.

So ... Sham wins the Derby by 8 ... the Preakness by 8 ... and the Belmont by 13 ... possibly breaking ... but definitely equaling ... all three track records.

Superhorse? I think yes.

[kentuckyrosesinmay]

Originally Posted by Bold Brooklynite

All true ...

... and that only reinforces my point about comparing what Spectacular Bid did as a 4YO ... to what Secretariat did as a 3YO ... which is what another poster is prepared to do ... and then use it to make incorrect inferences.

The topic of this thread was who was the best dirt horse in America? Most people put Secretariat on the top of their lists when I think that other horses should be filling the top spot such as Man O' War. I know that you can't compare a 3yo to 4yo when they are actually racing against each other most of the time except for the rare occassion when the 3yo actually beats the older horses.

The whole point is that I have to compare them OVERALL. SB raced as 2, 3, and 4. Secretariat raced only at 2 and 3. Therefore, I have to compare them accordingly. Now I know that Secretariat couldn't help that he didn't race at four, but I can't and refuse to predict what could have been. I only go with what has been accomplished and FACTS. Therefore, to me, SB had the better OVERALL career as a racehorse mainly because of his amazing accomplishments at four. If I compared SB's best year with Secretariat's best year, SB wins in my eyes. I'm not going to take Bid's wonderful 4yo year away from him just because Secretariat didn't race at four. That would just be crazy and an injustice to SB.

You must realize that certain horses peak at different times in their lives. While outstanding as three year olds, I believe that the three big ones in the late 70s (Affirmed, Seattle Slew, and "The Bid") best year were when they were 4yo. Some horses peak in their three year old years and then tail off. Some are better when they mature. For these three greats, they just got better, and better, and better as time went on...like a fine wine.

The Triple Crown is a greatest feat in sports to accomplish, but I do not think that you can define a horse's overall greatness by just those three races (Secretariat being the only exception since he didn't race as an older horse...and I'm only talking about the horses in the who won the TC in the 70s). Look at GZ who didn't even race in them. Most people nowadays think that it is all that there is to horse racing but I see racing as much more. Sometimes you have to look beyond the box. I don't think that you can measure a horse's true greatness until you see them run as older, mature ones against other older ones. Then you know what they are really made of.

Don't get me wrong...I absolutely LOVE Secretariat. The first time I saw his race, the Belmont Charge, I cried. It still leaves tears in my eyes. That was his day.

But SB had his days too where he was a God among horses. Really, Spectacular Bid and Secretariat were very comparable in my eyes.

Secretariat-12 furlongs-2:24
Spectacular Bid-10 furlongs-1:57 4/5.

Just to look at those times leaves me in awe. Even though you are rough around the edges BB, I must thank you. This has been a very good thread with a lot of very good information in it. I've learned a lot from it. It persuaded me to look up a lot on the history of the various champions of our sport (and no not Secretariat or SB (I already knew a whole lot about them) but others...).

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

Even though you are rough around the edges BB, I must thank you. This has been a very good thread with a lot of very good information in it. I've learned a lot from it. It persuaded me to look up a lot on the history of the various champions of our sport (and no not Secretariat or SB (I already knew a whole lot about them) but others...).

Your entire post makes sense ... especially this last paragraph.

Many racing fans haven't taken the time to become more familiar with the sport's history. To some ... thoroughbred racing began in 1995 or thereabouts.

I'm not picking on anyone ... but there was a poster who ranked Silverbulletday as the 4th best filly of "all-time" ... a preposterous notion to anyone who has an understanding of the great fillies of the past.

I'd encourage one-and-all to take the time to read up on thoroughbred racing's glorious past ... and I applaud Somerfrost for opening up the scope of these discussions.

And ... I've been described in many ways ... but never as "rough around the edges" ... quite the opposite of the "too smooth" descriptor which is sometimes inappropriately directed toward me.