Sham
 

So what ever did happen to Sham? In any other year but 1973 he would have been the champ. Did he race after the Belmont? I always felt like he was a potential great horse, but Secretariat broke his heart. Thoughts?

Largo

Who knows...

But Hard Spun will be the best sire of this crop.

he never raced again after the belmont. i think they were prep'ing him for a fall campaign when he was injured and retired to stud.

his time of 1:59 4/5 would have been the fastest derby ever had secretariat not beaten him.

both sham and secretariat did that on a track that didn't produce any other track records that day, unlike the joke of a track the day monarchos also put up a 1:59 4/5.

i've never agreed with the 'broke his heart' part of this sport. i don't think sham broke secretariats heart a few weeks before the derby when sham won the wood.

as for the speed on belmont day, didn't forego tie or break a record in his race that day?

I'm not sure about Forego but Angle Light won the Wood.

Oh my goodness; a post like this is google catnip to a nerd such as myself... :)

From Wikipedia:

<<While Sham did not race again after the Belmont Stakes he was not retired, contrary to the perception of a Belmont breakdown, until July of 1973 while preparing to meet Secretariat again at Saratoga. It was in mid July that a hairline fracture of his leg was detected and he was retired. Sham was sent to stud duty at Walmac International near Lexington, Kentucky. Some of his progeny included stakes winners Arewehavingfunyet (f), Jaazeiro, and Safe Play. He died of a heart attack on April 3, 1993 at age 23 and is buried on the Walmac farm......... It was not in mid-July! Sham was operated on for a pin to be placed in the right front cannon bone on July 6th! EVERYONE involved agreed that it appeared to have happened in LATE June. They couldn't tell if it happened in the Belmont Stakes or shortly after.>>

Here's the link to the entire piece on him:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sham_%28horse%29

i sit corrected.

Sham ran second in the Wood so you're right in that he did beat Secretariat in that race, even though he didn't win it.

Forego won a mile-and-a-sixteenth allowance race on Belmont Stakes Day, 1973, running the distance one-fifth slower than the track record.