Horse Racing Fantasy Community

Every year, American thoroughbred racing produces scores of very good race horses, but very few great ones. That’s a fact … and the reason why there hasn’t been a Triple Crown winner since the 1970s, more than thirty years ago.
It’s kind of surprising when you consider that the breed is constantly being improved and today’s race horses are bigger, stronger and faster than their most recent ancestors. Yet, year in and year out, very good horses dot the racing landscape, but great horses rarely show up.
It seemed that way back in 1993 when a well-bred first time starter, named Cigar, stepped on a California track for his Maiden race. It was a Turf Race and Cigar performed moderately well, but lost. In fact, the 3-year old ran in six races that year and managed to win just two of them. Nothing spectacular … he outran allowance horses, as well as low grade stakes horses in northern and southern California, clearly performing like a real race horse, but doing it against inferior competition.
Cigar’s owners shipped the horse east for his 4-year old campaign – to the barn of world-class trainer, Bill Mott. And that’s when greatness showed up. Mott, with Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey in the irons, ran Cigar on the Turf a couple of times with indifferent results. Then … brainstorm!
Mott put Cigar on the dirt in an allowance race at New York’s Aqueduct Race Track. He breezed to an 8-length win. Next race … the Grade 1 NYRA Mile (now called the Cigar Mile) and another big win. And the rest is History.
Cigar’s 5-year old season was one of the greatest in racing history. I watched him run on TV, watched him live, when possible, watched greatness unfold in race after race after race. Running at distances starting at 1 Mile and longer, “Always Smoking” Cigar vanquished all his competitors, including the great 3-year old champion, Holy Bull.
Cigar captured the imagination – and the allegiance – of racing fans everywhere as he piled up an amazing 16 straight wins, the first horse to do it since the great Citation in 1948 and 1950. Cigar raced undefeated in 1995, traveled half way around the world to win the Dubai Cup … beat all challengers and won a fortune for his connections.
The streak ended in 1996. Cigar actually lost his last two races, retired unsuccessfully to stud and lives out his years comfortably in retirement. His career earnings: a whopping $9,999,813. It wasn’t the purse money that made him great. It was the thrills and excitement he provided to me and a legion of other racing fans. Thank you, Cigar.