They just don't make horses like this anymore. Truly one of racing's top races ever. I hope that one day the quality of racing will improve, that virtually every person in north america comes to know the greatness of the sport, & what these thoroughbreds can do.
Not to detract from Excellers performance as I think he was a great horse but this race cemented Slew as a real champion. He put up amazing fractions on an off track and still had the fire to actually start coming back at Exceller near the finish. I was never a Slew fan as I thought the crop of 3 year olds were weak in his TC year but this race changed my opinion.
Of all of Slews races I like many others believe this was his greatest performance. Even though he lost he demonstrated how great he was. When a horse goes as fast as he did and a HIGH CLASS closer like Exceller comes up,they almost always cruise on by,right? WRONG,not when your dealing with the SLEW,he showed on that day what he was,and I respect him to the highest degree!
Apparently Exceller started out life Racing in England where he won the Group 1 Coronation Cup at Epsom (Mile and a Half,Turf) Amazing to be able to transfer that same ability to dirt.
"Shortly after Exceller came to me last year, the owner called and told me to kill the horse because he couldn't pay for him. He told me to bring the horse to the slaughterhouse, and that's what I had to do. I walked him over myself. I made an appointment because I wanted to get it over with quick, but they were very busy when we got there and we had to wait. Exceller knew what was going on; he didn't want to be there. Standing with him like that . . . . it made me feel like Judas."
I don't think Billy Turner or Jean Crugeut had any right to complain about Doug Peterson and Angel Cordero. Seattle Slew during that fall belmont/aqueduct meeting ran better than he ever did under Turner and Cruguet. I don't care if Affirmed slipped his saddle or not, he wasn't beating seattle slew regardless. as for Excelleror he was really good to. They were both winners that day
I never believed Affirmed saddle slipped. He was beaten badly that day. They had to come up with something. It was either "Slew is superior" or "The Saddle Slipped".
I will say this though. To me, this is the best race of Slews career. To be totally brutalized with those sick fractions, and to almost come back and beat a horse that was TUGGING on the far turn, was incredible. One of the gutsiest races Ive ever seen. Thanks for posting this.
Yep, the jockey was instructed to scream at Slew. AwsiDooger said: "Barrera instructed Life's Hope jockey to scream at Slew during the race, to get him rank. Cordero confirmed that's what was going on, until Life's Hope faded." Blatant cheating without a doubt. Take care.
LOL! Thats so pathetic! What was the jockeys name? Was it a big name jockey? I knew Barrera was kind of an arrogant and abrasive guy, but thats pretty weak.
The Miami Herald did a major article on this race a few days later. The screaming incident was mentioned prominently. Also many quotes from Billy Turner, Slew's former trainer. I posted some of them already in the comments on this video.
Notice on this clip you see Slew being loaded last, even though he has the #2 post position. That's because Slew broke out of the gate and had to be reloaded.
There are comments on YouTube about rabbits, specifically in a Dr. Fager/Damascus matchup. Life's Hope was a rabbit here for Affirmed. Barrera entered him after Slew won the Marlboro and Woodward easily on the front end.
Here's what bugged me about this rabbit: Barrera instructed Life's Hope jockey to scream at Slew during the race, to get him rank. Cordero confirmed that's what was going on, until Life's Hope faded. I lost a lot of respect for Laz Barrera for using a tactic like that.
Wow, Barrera is a flat-out cheater using tactics such as those. Truly, there is no place in this sport for that kind of behaviour. Rabbits and screamers SHOULD definitely be banned. Period. Perhaps jockeys should be miked up to have them put on the record and prevent yelling to provoke horses. Expense might prevent that however. Just a thought. Take care and thanks for the very valuable insight.
The irony is Affirmed wouldn't rate so he was stuck between Slew and Life's Hope and heard the screaming also.
This race had so many sidelight factors like Slew breaking through the gate, Affirmed getting rank, the rabbit, the screaming, the rapid pace for a mile and a half, Affirmed's saddle slipping, and of course Exceller's great move and Slew fighting back at the finish. Truly one of the most interesting races ever. Too bad Alydar missed it.
I agree about the screaming. Ridiculous. Years later I saw Barrera at Santa Anita before the races and wanted to give him a piece of my mind about this incident, but he seemed like such a sour SOB I decided it would be a waste of time.
I don't see how rabbits can be banned. Luckily they haven't been prevalent lately. But once a premier frontrunner shows up, we'll see another rabbit in a major race.
I remember Andy Beyer's first paragraph the next day in the Washington Post; "Exceller won Saturday's Jockey Club Gold Cup. Seattle Slew was its hero."
Beyer said on Larry King's Mutual radio program he didn't think we ever saw Slew run his best race. I agree with that. Slew was undertrained at 3 when the company wasn't great, nearly died of a virus and inactive for 10 months, and erratically trained as a 4-year-old by a very young trainer. Not a blueprint for a signature race.
Wow what a race, I had never seen it before. Seattle Slew ran a great race, falling behind to Excellor in the stretch run only to find a second wind and nearly win it. Great great race.
I am also sorry to hear from reading these posts that Excellor was sent to a slaughterhouse, these horses deserve more then to come to an end as horrible as that.
That's a good question. I'd like to think that those 3 [SS,AFF,EX] would have battled it out right to the wire. I think Slew would have won it though. Ya never know though. I loved all 3. Take care.
Slew set fractions of 22:3, 45:1, 1:09:2 in company, Exceller made up 10 lenghts in about 10 seconds, absolutely flying, and Slew still hung tough to almost take it. Every time I've seen this over the years, I think the same thing: Absolutely one of the greatest performances ever, by one of the greatest horses.
The most electrifying stretch run I have ever witnessed. Everyone in attendence was on their feet, the vast majority rooting for Slew to come back, despite who they had backed in the pools. Also, the early pace had alot to do with Affirmed's saddle slipping. Cauthen had no chance to rate him around the clubhouse turn and down the backstretch. Thanks for posting video.
I'm glad you both liked it. This race was a barn-burner just like Chic said. Slew was a brilliant horse. Exceller was an excellent horse too. Take care.
Yes, Exceller was a terrific horse to accomplish that. I agree, being sent to the slaughterhouse was an awful fate for him. A crying shame. Take care.
A pretty good gang-imitation of Secretariat for the first 6 f.
But SS showed his real mettle in the stretch. Even if he missed it by a nose - and bursting out of the gate prematurely didn't help - he was still the better horse that day.
Great SECRETARIAT analogy, WhiteCamry. I'd never thought of it that way until you mentioned it. It was blazing fast. What a clip they ran! SS was much the best that day, I agree. Take care.
That's seldom mentioned about this race, that Slew broke through the gate early, went far down the track, and had to be reloaded. Billy Turner was livid about that in an article in the Miami Herald a few days later. He said Doug Pederson had Slew wound too tightly for a mile and a half, and the last thing Slew needed was a "whoop de do" jockey like Cordero.
It was a classic race for sure. The Slew gave it his all in this one. I wonder how big his heart was? Quite big I'm sure. Chick Anderson...could he call a race or what? "Tremendous" as he would say. God bless.
This race just proves what an amazing athlete Slew was. Exceller was also incredible.
RIP Boys
ruffianrulz 1 week ago
They just don't make horses like this anymore. Truly one of racing's top races ever. I hope that one day the quality of racing will improve, that virtually every person in north america comes to know the greatness of the sport, & what these thoroughbreds can do.
singbecause 1 month ago in playlist Horse Racing
Thinking of you, Exceller. You aren't forgotten.
LoriTopazz 5 months ago
In 1974 Forego won the same race! 4 years later another champion,Exceller, wins it :)
ginita105 1 year ago
The may be one of the most incredible races in the hisotry of the sport.
lengua92 2 years ago
Not to detract from Excellers performance as I think he was a great horse but this race cemented Slew as a real champion. He put up amazing fractions on an off track and still had the fire to actually start coming back at Exceller near the finish. I was never a Slew fan as I thought the crop of 3 year olds were weak in his TC year but this race changed my opinion.
joefederico 2 years ago
Good God! Watching Exceller make his move with that wide angle is really somethin'!
gfn02 3 years ago
Of all of Slews races I like many others believe this was his greatest performance. Even though he lost he demonstrated how great he was. When a horse goes as fast as he did and a HIGH CLASS closer like Exceller comes up,they almost always cruise on by,right? WRONG,not when your dealing with the SLEW,he showed on that day what he was,and I respect him to the highest degree!
BE109 3 years ago
thank sooooooooo much for thses memories, bless you
kelsoruffian 3 years ago
What amazing race, but it really makes the eventual fate of Exceller even more tragic.
donray7 3 years ago
Apparently Exceller started out life Racing in England where he won the Group 1 Coronation Cup at Epsom (Mile and a Half,Turf) Amazing to be able to transfer that same ability to dirt.
What a Gallant effort from Seattle Slew though
MrNice222111 4 years ago
wow Exceller was amazing coming up on them like that O.o I heard he was killed in a slaughter house thats too bad, he was pretty great racer eh?
sugarpuppy137 4 years ago
"Shortly after Exceller came to me last year, the owner called and told me to kill the horse because he couldn't pay for him. He told me to bring the horse to the slaughterhouse, and that's what I had to do. I walked him over myself. I made an appointment because I wanted to get it over with quick, but they were very busy when we got there and we had to wait. Exceller knew what was going on; he didn't want to be there. Standing with him like that . . . . it made me feel like Judas."
Machbragal 4 years ago
I don't think Billy Turner or Jean Crugeut had any right to complain about Doug Peterson and Angel Cordero. Seattle Slew during that fall belmont/aqueduct meeting ran better than he ever did under Turner and Cruguet. I don't care if Affirmed slipped his saddle or not, he wasn't beating seattle slew regardless. as for Excelleror he was really good to. They were both winners that day
proveout 4 years ago
I never believed Affirmed saddle slipped. He was beaten badly that day. They had to come up with something. It was either "Slew is superior" or "The Saddle Slipped".
jess4metoo 4 years ago
A few particulars from this race:
* Slew was the favorite at 3/5
* The entry of Affirmed and Life's Hope was 2/1
* Exceller was third choice at 4/1
* It was weight for age, with Slew and Exceller carrying 126 ans Affirmed 121
* Cordero's foot came out of the iron early in the race. Billy Turner said he saw Cordero flailing and briefly though Slew had broken down.
The final time was very good for an off track, 2:27 1/5. It was such a lousy day only 25,000 fans showed up for such a great race.
AwsiDooger 4 years ago
I will say this though. To me, this is the best race of Slews career. To be totally brutalized with those sick fractions, and to almost come back and beat a horse that was TUGGING on the far turn, was incredible. One of the gutsiest races Ive ever seen. Thanks for posting this.
LiquorWreckedEm 4 years ago
Tell me about the screaming please? I dont understand. Was it the jockey screaming at Slew? And it was intentional?
LiquorWreckedEm 4 years ago
Yep, the jockey was instructed to scream at Slew. AwsiDooger said: "Barrera instructed Life's Hope jockey to scream at Slew during the race, to get him rank. Cordero confirmed that's what was going on, until Life's Hope faded." Blatant cheating without a doubt. Take care.
cf1970 4 years ago
LOL! Thats so pathetic! What was the jockeys name? Was it a big name jockey? I knew Barrera was kind of an arrogant and abrasive guy, but thats pretty weak.
LiquorWreckedEm 4 years ago
LOL, sounds like something Cordero would do himself if he had to.
JimSpoor 4 years ago
The Miami Herald did a major article on this race a few days later. The screaming incident was mentioned prominently. Also many quotes from Billy Turner, Slew's former trainer. I posted some of them already in the comments on this video.
Notice on this clip you see Slew being loaded last, even though he has the #2 post position. That's because Slew broke out of the gate and had to be reloaded.
AwsiDooger 4 years ago
Yeah you are going to have to teach me slot buster, I'm not even sure who won!
Furnifur 3 years ago
There are comments on YouTube about rabbits, specifically in a Dr. Fager/Damascus matchup. Life's Hope was a rabbit here for Affirmed. Barrera entered him after Slew won the Marlboro and Woodward easily on the front end.
Here's what bugged me about this rabbit: Barrera instructed Life's Hope jockey to scream at Slew during the race, to get him rank. Cordero confirmed that's what was going on, until Life's Hope faded. I lost a lot of respect for Laz Barrera for using a tactic like that.
AwsiDooger 5 years ago
Wow, Barrera is a flat-out cheater using tactics such as those. Truly, there is no place in this sport for that kind of behaviour. Rabbits and screamers SHOULD definitely be banned. Period. Perhaps jockeys should be miked up to have them put on the record and prevent yelling to provoke horses. Expense might prevent that however. Just a thought. Take care and thanks for the very valuable insight.
cf1970 5 years ago
The irony is Affirmed wouldn't rate so he was stuck between Slew and Life's Hope and heard the screaming also.
This race had so many sidelight factors like Slew breaking through the gate, Affirmed getting rank, the rabbit, the screaming, the rapid pace for a mile and a half, Affirmed's saddle slipping, and of course Exceller's great move and Slew fighting back at the finish. Truly one of the most interesting races ever. Too bad Alydar missed it.
AwsiDooger 5 years ago
I agree about the screaming. Ridiculous. Years later I saw Barrera at Santa Anita before the races and wanted to give him a piece of my mind about this incident, but he seemed like such a sour SOB I decided it would be a waste of time.
I don't see how rabbits can be banned. Luckily they haven't been prevalent lately. But once a premier frontrunner shows up, we'll see another rabbit in a major race.
AwsiDooger 5 years ago
I remember Andy Beyer's first paragraph the next day in the Washington Post; "Exceller won Saturday's Jockey Club Gold Cup. Seattle Slew was its hero."
Beyer said on Larry King's Mutual radio program he didn't think we ever saw Slew run his best race. I agree with that. Slew was undertrained at 3 when the company wasn't great, nearly died of a virus and inactive for 10 months, and erratically trained as a 4-year-old by a very young trainer. Not a blueprint for a signature race.
AwsiDooger 5 years ago
Wow what a race, I had never seen it before. Seattle Slew ran a great race, falling behind to Excellor in the stretch run only to find a second wind and nearly win it. Great great race.
I am also sorry to hear from reading these posts that Excellor was sent to a slaughterhouse, these horses deserve more then to come to an end as horrible as that.
Jugg3rnut 5 years ago
Do you think things would have been alittle different if Affirmed saddle didnt slip and if they didnt run those fast fractions early on?
JSanity01 5 years ago
That's a good question. I'd like to think that those 3 [SS,AFF,EX] would have battled it out right to the wire. I think Slew would have won it though. Ya never know though. I loved all 3. Take care.
cf1970 5 years ago
Slew set fractions of 22:3, 45:1, 1:09:2 in company, Exceller made up 10 lenghts in about 10 seconds, absolutely flying, and Slew still hung tough to almost take it. Every time I've seen this over the years, I think the same thing: Absolutely one of the greatest performances ever, by one of the greatest horses.
Bassman968 5 years ago
The most electrifying stretch run I have ever witnessed. Everyone in attendence was on their feet, the vast majority rooting for Slew to come back, despite who they had backed in the pools. Also, the early pace had alot to do with Affirmed's saddle slipping. Cauthen had no chance to rate him around the clubhouse turn and down the backstretch. Thanks for posting video.
343yourmom 5 years ago
I'm glad you both liked it. This race was a barn-burner just like Chic said. Slew was a brilliant horse. Exceller was an excellent horse too. Take care.
cf1970 5 years ago
>> Damn shame what that dutch sob did to him <<
It was a Swede.
jumptheoxer 5 years ago
Exceller is the only horse to hold the honor of beating 2 triple crown winners in one race. Damn shame what that dutch sob did to him
suek596 5 years ago
Yes, Exceller was a terrific horse to accomplish that. I agree, being sent to the slaughterhouse was an awful fate for him. A crying shame. Take care.
cf1970 5 years ago
The SOB was Swedish.
WhiteCamry 5 years ago
Ah - never was good with geography
suek596 5 years ago
A pretty good gang-imitation of Secretariat for the first 6 f.
But SS showed his real mettle in the stretch. Even if he missed it by a nose - and bursting out of the gate prematurely didn't help - he was still the better horse that day.
WhiteCamry 5 years ago
Great SECRETARIAT analogy, WhiteCamry. I'd never thought of it that way until you mentioned it. It was blazing fast. What a clip they ran! SS was much the best that day, I agree. Take care.
cf1970 5 years ago
That's seldom mentioned about this race, that Slew broke through the gate early, went far down the track, and had to be reloaded. Billy Turner was livid about that in an article in the Miami Herald a few days later. He said Doug Pederson had Slew wound too tightly for a mile and a half, and the last thing Slew needed was a "whoop de do" jockey like Cordero.
AwsiDooger 5 years ago
I had only heard about this race... I had never seen it.. Amazing race by Slew considering the those early fractions.
Thank you for posting it...
partymanners 5 years ago
The Slew was incredible in that race for sure. Glad you enjoyed it. Take care.
cf1970 5 years ago
I was 24 at the time & saw this race live. As a big Seattle Slew fan, him losing broke my heart.
Seattle Slew lost the "Fall Triple Crown" by a nose.
His son(Slew 'O Gold) went on the win "Fall Triple Crown" a few years later.
BTW Another great Chic Anderson quote from this race
"Excellar's got it in gear, and he' flying"
JohnFPorcaro 5 years ago
It was a classic race for sure. The Slew gave it his all in this one. I wonder how big his heart was? Quite big I'm sure. Chick Anderson...could he call a race or what? "Tremendous" as he would say. God bless.
cf1970 5 years ago