Einstein (horse)
Encyclopedia
Einstein is a Thoroughbred
racehorse
competing in the United States
. Bred by Fazenda Mondesir, http://www.fazendamondesir.com/index_2.htm he was sired by the 1985 American Horse of the Year, Spend A Buck
. His dam, Gay Charm, was the 1988 Brazilian Champion Three-Year-Old Filly. His damsire was Ghadeer, a son of Lyphard
and an influential stallion
in Brazil who sired twenty-five Group One
winners.
When he was brought to the United States, Einstein's new owners entrusted his race conditioning to Helen Pitts
, who had taken over their stable upon the retirement of Kenneth McPeek
. Einstein made his American debut on February 25, 2006 at Gulfstream Park
in Florida
, where he won the first of his two Gulfstream Park Turf Handicaps. He went on to wins that include races on three different track surfaces: the Turf Classic Stakes on turf
and the Clark Handicap
on dirt, both in 2008 at Churchill Downs
, and in 2009, California's
richest race, the Santa Anita Handicap
on Pro-Ride synthetic dirt.
The winner of five Grade I
races so far in his career, Einstein successfully defended his title in the Grade I Woodford Reserve
-sponsored Turf Classic Stakes on May 2, 2009.
on June 13 he was going for a world record, trying to be the first horse to win Grade 1 races on all three surfaces in te same year, first in the Santa Anita, then in the Woodford, and lastly on dirt in the race he got second in before, the Stephen Foster Handicap
. The race played out terribly for him. He was blocked in the whole time, and down the stretch when a small hole opened for him to get out and his jockey tried to get him through, it was quickly closed by a horse on the outside. When he finally got out, the race was almost over, and though he closed late he had no time to catch winner Macho Again
and Robby Albarado
. He ended up third.
Next he ran in the Arlington Million
, a race he placed badly in in 2008. He went up against the world's top turf horses, including American stars Gio Ponti
and Presious Passion
and International turf horses Gloria De Campeao (the French horse who placed second in the 2009 Dubai World Cup
), Cima de Triomphe, and Stotsfold. Other American entries wereMr. Sidney, Just As Well, and Recapturetheglory
, who placed fifth in the 2008 Kentucky Derby
.
Einstein ran a bad race, and never showed the late kick he usually had, coming in sixth to rising star Gio Ponti
.
On September 3, 2009 it was announced that Frank Stronach purchased the horse from Midnight Cry Stables.
Einstein ran in the Pacific Classic Stakes
at Del Mar Racetrack
in California but was beaten by a neck by longshot Richard's Kid. His next race was the Breeders' Cup Classic
on November 7. He had already won on the same track at the same distance over the same surface, but due to the entries of Rip Van Winkle
and the top mare in the country Zenyatta
, he was not a favorite. "It's the biggest race of his life, I want him to come in fresh," trainer Helen Pitts said http://www.ntra.com/content.aspx?type=related&id=38967. Einstein proved to be one of the major disappointments in the race, finishing 11th out of 12 runners.
Pitts later announced that she was seriously considering entering Einstein in the Grade II Clark Handicap on November 27 at Churchill Downs. The poor Breeders' Cup showing led her to decline an invitation to race Einstein in Japan. In fact, Einstein did run in the Grade II Clark Handicap and, carrying the high weight of the race, finished a game third after starting from the outside gate (14th Post Position) and being blocked in the stretch. It is uncertain whether the Clark will be his last race; his owner, businessman Frank Stronach, has not said whether he will retire to stand stud at Stronach's Adena Springs s farm near Paris, Kentucky
starting with the 2010 breeding season, or whether he will head to Hong Kong for the December 2009 Hong Kong Cup.
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racehorse
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
competing in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Bred by Fazenda Mondesir, http://www.fazendamondesir.com/index_2.htm he was sired by the 1985 American Horse of the Year, Spend A Buck
Spend A Buck
Spend A Buck was an American thoroughbred race horse.-Background:Spend A Buck was sired by Buckaroo out of the dam Belle de Jour...
. His dam, Gay Charm, was the 1988 Brazilian Champion Three-Year-Old Filly. His damsire was Ghadeer, a son of Lyphard
Lyphard
Lyphard was a French Thoroughbred racehorse and an important sire. American bred in Pennsylvania, Lyphard was a son of Northern Dancer out of the mare Goofed. He was auctioned as a weanling at November's Keeneland Sales to Tim Rogers, a horseman from Ireland, who then put him up for sale at...
and an influential stallion
Stallion (horse)
A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded .Stallions will follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" neck, as well as a somewhat more muscular physique as compared to...
in Brazil who sired twenty-five Group One
Group One
Group One or Group 1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. Group One races may be run under handicap conditions in Australia but in Europe weight-for-age conditions always apply. Races may be also restricted to age groups or a...
winners.
When he was brought to the United States, Einstein's new owners entrusted his race conditioning to Helen Pitts
Helen Pitts-Blasi
Helen Pitts-Blasi is an American trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses.Born on a farm, Helen Pitts' parents were both involved in steeplechase racing. She rode ponies and horses from the time she was a young girl, competing in such things as steeplechase racing, pony racing, and fox hunting...
, who had taken over their stable upon the retirement of Kenneth McPeek
Kenneth McPeek
Kenneth G. McPeek is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer.Kenneth G. McPeek was born August 2, 1962 in Fort Chaffee, Arkansas and raised in Lexington, Kentucky. He graduated from Tates Creek High School and then the University of Kentucky with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration...
. Einstein made his American debut on February 25, 2006 at Gulfstream Park
Gulfstream Park
Gulfstream Park Racing & Casino is a racetrack and county-approved racino in Hallandale Beach, Florida, in the United States. During its annual meet, which spans December through April, it is one of the most important venues for horse racing in America....
in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, where he won the first of his two Gulfstream Park Turf Handicaps. He went on to wins that include races on three different track surfaces: the Turf Classic Stakes on turf
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
and the Clark Handicap
Clark Handicap
The Clark Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in late November/early December at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Among the oldest races in the United States, it was first run in 1875, the year the racetrack opened for business...
on dirt, both in 2008 at Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs, located in Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby annually. It officially opened in 1875, and held the first Kentucky Derby and the first Kentucky Oaks in the same year. Churchill Downs...
, and in 2009, California's
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
richest race, the Santa Anita Handicap
Santa Anita Handicap
The Santa Anita Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade I race for horses four years old and up , and is considered the most important race for older horses in North America during the winter racing season...
on Pro-Ride synthetic dirt.
The winner of five Grade I
Graded stakes race
A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...
races so far in his career, Einstein successfully defended his title in the Grade I Woodford Reserve
Woodford Reserve
Woodford Reserve is a brand of premium small batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey produced by the Brown-Forman Corporation. It is distilled at the company's Woodford Reserve Distillery, and marketed under the former company name for the distillery, Labrot & Graham. The distillery is located in...
-sponsored Turf Classic Stakes on May 2, 2009.
on June 13 he was going for a world record, trying to be the first horse to win Grade 1 races on all three surfaces in te same year, first in the Santa Anita, then in the Woodford, and lastly on dirt in the race he got second in before, the Stephen Foster Handicap
Stephen Foster Handicap
The Stephen Foster Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race run in mid-June near the end of the Churchill Downs Spring Meet in Louisville, Kentucky...
. The race played out terribly for him. He was blocked in the whole time, and down the stretch when a small hole opened for him to get out and his jockey tried to get him through, it was quickly closed by a horse on the outside. When he finally got out, the race was almost over, and though he closed late he had no time to catch winner Macho Again
Macho Again
Macho Again is a retired American thoroughbred stallion racehorse. He was sired by the 2000 American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt Macho Uno, who in turn was a son of leading sire Holy Bull. He is out of the mare Go Donna Go, who is the daughter of Wild Again.Macho Again got his start as a...
and Robby Albarado
Robby Albarado
Robby J. Albarado is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He began riding at the age of 12 at bush tracks in his native Louisiana and after turning professional, earned his first win at Evangeline Downs in 1990...
. He ended up third.
Next he ran in the Arlington Million
Arlington Million
The Arlington Million is a Grade 1 flathorse race in the United States for thoroughbred horses aged three years and upward. It is raced over a distance of 1¼ miles on the turf at Arlington Park, Arlington Heights, Illinois in August each year...
, a race he placed badly in in 2008. He went up against the world's top turf horses, including American stars Gio Ponti
Giò Ponti
Gio Ponti was one of the most important Italian architects, industrial designers, furniture designers, artists, and publishers of the twentieth century.-Early life:...
and Presious Passion
Presious Passion
Presious Passion is a multiple Grade I winning Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred in the United States, he is a gelded son of multiple Grade I winner Royal Anthem and the unraced mare, Princesa's Passion, who comes from an extended family of stakes winning horses. Presious Passion's career has included...
and International turf horses Gloria De Campeao (the French horse who placed second in the 2009 Dubai World Cup
Dubai World Cup
The Dubai World Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually since 1996 and from 2010 at the Meydan Racecourse in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates...
), Cima de Triomphe, and Stotsfold. Other American entries wereMr. Sidney, Just As Well, and Recapturetheglory
Recapturetheglory
Recapturetheglory is an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by Charles Jacobi, the son of 1994 Breeders' Cup Sprint winner Cherokee Run is out of the mare Cold Awakening, by Dehere....
, who placed fifth in the 2008 Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
.
Einstein ran a bad race, and never showed the late kick he usually had, coming in sixth to rising star Gio Ponti
Giò Ponti
Gio Ponti was one of the most important Italian architects, industrial designers, furniture designers, artists, and publishers of the twentieth century.-Early life:...
.
On September 3, 2009 it was announced that Frank Stronach purchased the horse from Midnight Cry Stables.
Einstein ran in the Pacific Classic Stakes
Pacific Classic Stakes
The Pacific Classic Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for runners aged 3-year-old or up run at the classic American distance of a mile and a quarter...
at Del Mar Racetrack
Del Mar Racetrack
Del Mar Racetrack is an American Thoroughbred horse racing track at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in the seaside city of Del Mar, California, 20 miles north of San Diego. Operated by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, it is known for the slogan: "Where The Turf Meets The Surf." It was built by a partnership...
in California but was beaten by a neck by longshot Richard's Kid. His next race was the Breeders' Cup Classic
Breeders' Cup Classic
The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade I Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race for 3 year olds and older run at a distance of 1¼ miles on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships...
on November 7. He had already won on the same track at the same distance over the same surface, but due to the entries of Rip Van Winkle
Rip Van Winkle (horse)
Rip Van Winkle is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse sired by the great dual Derby winner Gallieo. Like his sire Rip Van Winkle was also trained by Aidan O'Brien.-2008: two-year-old season:...
and the top mare in the country Zenyatta
Zenyatta
Zenyatta is a retired American champion Thoroughbred racehorse, winner of 19 consecutive races in a 20-race career and American record-holder for consecutive victories without defeat in unrestricted races....
, he was not a favorite. "It's the biggest race of his life, I want him to come in fresh," trainer Helen Pitts said http://www.ntra.com/content.aspx?type=related&id=38967. Einstein proved to be one of the major disappointments in the race, finishing 11th out of 12 runners.
Pitts later announced that she was seriously considering entering Einstein in the Grade II Clark Handicap on November 27 at Churchill Downs. The poor Breeders' Cup showing led her to decline an invitation to race Einstein in Japan. In fact, Einstein did run in the Grade II Clark Handicap and, carrying the high weight of the race, finished a game third after starting from the outside gate (14th Post Position) and being blocked in the stretch. It is uncertain whether the Clark will be his last race; his owner, businessman Frank Stronach, has not said whether he will retire to stand stud at Stronach's Adena Springs s farm near Paris, Kentucky
Paris, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,183 people, 3,857 households, and 2,487 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 4,222 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 84.23% White, 12.71% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.16%...
starting with the 2010 breeding season, or whether he will head to Hong Kong for the December 2009 Hong Kong Cup.