The Three-Year-Old

The Three-Year-Old. . Man o' War's three-year-old season began late. Many in the racing world had expected to see him run in the Kentucky Derby, but his owner, Sam Riddle, kept him out of it. He felt that a long race like the Derby (1¼ miles) came too early in the season and that his colt was not ready for the strain. Instead, Riddle delayed Man o' War's first start until the Preakness (1 1/8 miles) eight days later on May 18. A new jockey, Clarence Kummer, would be riding him, since Loftus was under suspension. Kummer rode Man o' War in all but two of his races as a three-year-old., Man o' War quickly became racing's leading three-year-old. He won the Preakness easily, again beating Upset, and then, in the Withers, he set a new American record for a mile, 1:35 4/5. Starting with the Belmont Stakes, the competition began to thin out. Owners apparently did not want to pit their animals against the horse that could not lose. At the Belmont, only one other starter came to the barrier with Man o War, but this lack of competition had no effect on him. He still ran magnificently, winning by 20 lengths and setting a new American record for 1 3/8 miles of 2:14 1/5. It stood for fifty years., Next came the Stuyvesant Handicap, which he won by eight lengths, then the Dwyer Stakes, which matched him against another single entry, John P. Grier. This was probably the only race in which Man o' War had to exert himself to win. John P. Grier managed to stay close to Man o' War throughout most of the 1 1/8 mile course, even moving to the front by a head at the furlong pole. Here, Kummer used his whip, the only time it was ever used on Man o' War. Exploding into the lead, he won by a length and a half, setting a new American record of 1:49 1/5., Three more wins followed at the Miller Stakes, the Travers and the hard-to-believe Lawrence Realization, which he won by an estimated 100 lengths, setting an American record of 2:40 4/5 for 1 5/8 miles. At the Jockey Club Gold Cup he set another American record of 2:28 4/5 for 1½ miles. Next, in the Potomac Handicap, he set a record for the Havre de Grace track of 1:44 4/5 for 1 1/16 miles., The thrilling finale to his career was the $80,000 Kenilworth Gold Cup match race against the great four-year-old Sir Barton, winner the previous year of what we now call the Triple Crown. The date was October 12, 1920. Filmed by 14 cameras and later screened at movie theatres around the world, the race was Man o' War's all the way. Breezing across the finish seven lengths ahead, he clocked 2:05 for the 1¼ mile course, cutting 6 2/5 seconds off the track record. It established his absolute supremacy in Thoroughbred racing. In the opinion of his owner, Man o' War had done enough. Given the increased weight he would have to carry as a four-year-old, it was time to let him rest and begin a new career at stud.