Imagine a horse so powerful and swift that he didn’t just break records, he smashed them, leaving entire fields of top-tier contenders in the dust. That was Secretariat, often called “Big Red,” but the nickname only scratches the surface of his larger-than-life presence.
Below, we dive into the captivating saga of a colt who started out as the “loser” in a coin toss and ended up as the gold standard in Thoroughbred racing.
1. A Coin Toss That Changed Racing History
In 1969, two prominent stable owners, Ogden Phipps and Penny Chenery (Meadow Stable), agreed on an unusual method of a coin toss to determine who would claim which newly foaled offspring by the famed sire Bold Ruler. Phipps “won” the coin toss, choosing a foal out of Hasty Matelda, named Full Out, a decent runner but nowhere near the realm of greatness.
On the other hand, Chenery was left with the second less desirable option: a colt born in March 1970 to the mare Somethingroyal. That lanky chestnut, soon christened Secretariat, would transform racing forever.
2. Secretariat’s Early Racing Career and Rapid Improvement
Secretariat’s racing debut at Aqueduct on July 4, 1972, was hardly an explosion. He broke slowly, got bumped hard, and finished fourth. Jockey Paul Feliciano recalled the collision was so strong, “He’d have fallen if he wasn’t so powerful.” But after that rocky start, the colt rapidly improved.
By the end of his two-year-old campaign, he had racked up multiple stakes victories and was named Horse of the Year, a remarkable honor for a 2-year-old.
Eddie Sweat, who cared for Big Red daily, initially found him “clumsy” and a bit mischievous in the barn. But once Secretariat got rolling on the track, it was clear the “kid” had extraordinary power and a laid-back temperament that thrived under training.
3. An Abscess Almost Wrecked the Derby
Fast-forward to early 1973. Secretariat breezed through two preparatory races before landing a puzzling third in the Wood Memorial. Many dismissed his Triple Crown chances; another Bold Ruler descendant, Sham, was suddenly the “it horse.”
But behind the scenes, Secretariat was nursing a painful mouth abscess that hindered his run. Once treated, he unleashed the performance of a lifetime at Churchill Downs, shocking the field by accelerating in every quarter-mile and smashing the Derby record with a final time of 1:59 2/5. Only Monarchos has since broken two minutes in the Derby, and still couldn’t touch Secretariat’s clock.
4. Preakness: Controversy and a 39-Year Time Debate
Two weeks after the Derby, Secretariat lined up at Pimlico for the Preakness Stakes. Again, he started last, then swept around the first turn with a wide, blazing move, leaving Sham and others behind. He won decisively, but the official timer read 1:54 2/5, slower than what many witnesses believed.
The Daily Racing Form had clocked Secretariat at 1:53 2/5, a track record. For nearly 40 years, the dispute raged until, in 2012, the Maryland Racing Commission officially recognized 1:53 flat, confirming Big Red had broken Pimlico’s track record long before anyone credited him for it.
5. The Belmont Stakes: A 31-Length Beatdown for the Ages
Having conquered the Derby and the Preakness, Secretariat arrived at Belmont Park on June 9, 1973, to chase the first Triple Crown in 25 years. The track didn’t even allow bets on a third-place “show” for Secretariat, nobody believed he’d finish worse than second. His biggest rival, Sham, tried to match Big Red’s ferocious early speed, but by the top of the stretch, Sham was spent.
Secretariat roared on, eventually winning by an absurd 31 lengths. His time of 2:24 remains the fastest Belmont Stakes ever, for what many call the single greatest performance in horse racing history.
Why 31 Lengths Matters: In elite races, even a 5-length gap is considered a blowout. Secretariat nearly tripled that notion, turning a grueling mile-and-a-half test into a solo parade for the record books.
6. He Was a Media Darling, With a Hollywood Agent
By Belmont time, “Secretariat mania” was in full swing. He graced the covers of Sports Illustrated, Time, and Newsweek all at once, a trifecta virtually unseen for any athlete, animal or human. Owner Penny Chenery found herself swamped with appearance requests and mountains of fan mail, so she hired the William Morris Agency to handle Big Red’s scheduling.
Even after retiring from the track, Secretariat remained a public obsession. Letters poured in, memorabilia sold in droves, and people lined up at racetracks and parades just to see him.
That same year, Secretariat also took on the Marlboro Cup, defeating older horses and even his own stablemate, Riva Ridge, in a then-world-record 1:45 2/5 for 1⅛ miles on dirt, another testament to Big Red’s unmatched versatility.
7. The $6 Million Syndication That Ended His Racing Days
Before the Triple Crown had even been claimed, Chenery knew Meadow Stable needed a financial lifeline. She syndicated Secretariat’s breeding rights for $6.08 million, equivalent to over $30 million in today’s money. The deal ensured Secretariat would retire at three, which explains why we never saw him run at four.
While fans might’ve yearned for more races, that decision helped preserve his legendary aura; Big Red left the stage with nearly every major record in his back pocket.
Secretariat briefly raced on turf that same year, including a record-breaking Man o’ War Stakes (1½ miles in 2:24 4/5 on grass). He showed he wasn’t just a dirt phenomenon, he had serious talent wherever he ran.
8. He Had a Huge Heart, Literally
Secretariat developed laminitis, a painful hoof disease, later in life. On October 4, 1989, at 19 years old, he was euthanized to end his suffering. During the necropsy, Dr. Thomas Swerczek discovered something staggering: Secretariat’s heart weighed 21–22 pounds, roughly two to three times the size of a typical Thoroughbred’s 8-pound heart.
Everyone in the room, Swerczek recalled, was momentarily speechless, this was a near-mythic explanation for how Big Red could easily outrun elite racehorses.
Additionally, racing tradition generally only buries a champion’s head, heart, and hooves, but Secretariat was interred intact, one final nod to his enduring impact.
9. Triple Crown? He Did It Better Than Anyone
Thirteen horses have now claimed the Triple Crown, but Secretariat’s times remain the best in each race. His 1:59 2/5 Derby, the corrected 1:53 Preakness, and that jaw-dropping 2:24 Belmont remain untouched.
The gap he put on his rivals, particularly the 31-length blowout, still astounds even seasoned horsemen. ESPN ranked him 35th among the 100 Greatest Athletes of the 20th century, making him the only horse on a list crowded with human superstars.
One of Secretariat’s most remarkable feats was accelerating each quarter-mile in the Kentucky Derby. In racing, a horse typically slows down in later fractions, so Secretariat’s negative-split run stands as a near-mythical performance.
10. Secretariat Lives On, In Blood and Onscreen
After his phenomenal 16 career wins (in 21 starts) and multiple record-smashing stakes, Secretariat retired to Claiborne Farm, siring 663 foals. While none matched his track exploits, his daughters produced the likes of Storm Cat and A.P. Indy, key foundation sires in modern racing.
Big Red also crossed into pop culture immortality with Disney’s 2010 film, Secretariat, starring Diane Lane as Penny Chenery. Today, fans still flock to his grave at Claiborne, snapping pictures and leaving flowers to honor a horse that redefined “fast.”
Final Thoughts
Secretariat wasn’t just a racehorse; he was a mesmerizing phenomenon. From that coin-toss origin story to his final stride at Belmont, he upended every doubt, dazzled every skeptic, and left a trail of broken stopwatches in his wake. His heart, figuratively and literally, was bigger than anything racing had ever seen, and decades later, he remains the standard by which every new superstar is measured.
Whether you see him as the perfect blend of speed and stamina or simply an impossible freak of genetics, one thing is clear: the legend of Big Red isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
