Tasso is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Thoroughbred

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...

. Out of the mare

Mare (horse)

A mare is an adult female horse or other equine.In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse age three and younger. However, in Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four years old; in harness racing a mare is a...

 Ecstacism, he was sired by Fappiano

Fappiano

Fappiano was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He was named for long-time New York Times sportswriter Joseph C. Nichols , who was born Giuseppe Carmine Fappiano....

, a son of the very influential Champion sire

Leading sire in North America

The list below shows the leading sire of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America for each year since 1830. This is determined by the amount of prizemoney won by the sire's progeny during the year...

 Mr. Prospector

Mr. Prospector

Mr. Prospector was a thoroughbred racehorse foaled in Kentucky, whose descendants have been dominant in the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. He won half of his 14 career races.-Background:...

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Trained by Neil Drysdale for owner Gerald Robins, Tasso raced seven times at age two, scoring an impressive five wins with one second and one third. Ridden by Laffit Pincay, Jr.

Laffit Pincay, Jr.

Laffit Alejandro Pincay, Jr. is a flat racing's all-time winningest jockey. He competed primarily in the United States.-Career:...

, his 1985 wins included the Breeders' Futurity Stakes at Keeneland Race Course in Kentucky and the Del Mar Futurity

Del Mar Futurity

The Del Mar Futurity is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A Grade I event since 2007, the race is open to horses, age two, willing to race seven furlongs on Polytrack synthetic dirt and offers a purse of $250,000.The race is currently...

 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

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...

. For the most important race of the year for his age group, Tasso's owner had to pay a supplemental fee of $120,000 to enter the colt in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile

Breeders' Cup Juvenile

The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships....

, which was raced that year at Aqueduct Racetrack

Aqueduct Racetrack

Aqueduct Racetrack is a thoroughbred horse-racing facility and racino in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. Its racing meets usually are from late October/early November through April.-History:...

 in Queens

Queens

Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....

, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

. His owner was rewarded for his belief in the colt when Tasso defeated Storm Cat

Storm Cat

Storm Cat was an American Thoroughbred stallion whose breeding fee during the peak of his stud career was $500,000, the highest in the world. As such, he was one of the few horses with a 24-hour armed guard....

 by a nose to win the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. Tasso's performances earned him U.S. Champion 2-Yr-Old Colt honors for 1985.

Racing at age three, Tasso again made seven starts, ending the season with two wins, two seconds, and two third-place finishes. He began his 3-year-old campaign impressively with a three-length win in the Manassa Mauler Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack. However, he did not make it to the U.S. Triple Crown series, and his best performances came in the Gotham

Gotham Stakes

The Gotham Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses run in early March at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. A Grade III event with a purse of $250,000, it is set at a distance of one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt...

 and Withers Stakes

Withers Stakes

The Withers Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds willing to compete one mile on the dirt. Held at Aqueduct Racetrack every year at the end of April , it is a Grade III event, and offers a purse of $150,000...

, in which he finished second. Sent out to race at age four, Tasso started nine times, winning twice and finishing in a dead heat

Dead Heat

Dead Heat is a 1988 movie about an LAPD police officer, Roger Mortis , killed while attempting to arrest zombies who have been reanimated by the head of Dante Laboratories in order to carry out violent armed robberies.-Plot:...

 for second behind winner Ferdinand

Ferdinand (horse)

Ferdinand was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1986 Kentucky Derby and 1987 Breeders' Cup Classic. He was voted the 1987 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year.He entered stud in 1989 and was later sold to a breeding farm in Japan in 1994....

 in the Grade I Hollywood Gold Cup

Hollywood Gold Cup

The Hollywood Gold Cup is an American Grade I stakes race for thoroughbred horses inaugurated in 1938 at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. It was run as a handicap race until 1997 when it was switched to weight-for-age conditions...

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Retired to stud

Horse breeding

Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...

, Tasso has met with modest success. Since 2000, he has been standing at the Janadriyah Stud Farm near Riyadh

Riyadh

Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...

, Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

, owned by Prince Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah

Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah

Prince Abdul-Aziz is the third son of King Abdullah and is the Deputy Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia. He was an adviser from 1989 to 2011.-Early life and education:...

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