Flying High And Heading For Fame

In a mood to rout any opposition, Secretariat rolled around the field to win a memorable Preakness. At his next stop, a crown awaits.

by Whitney Tower

Issue date: May 28, 1973

In 1973, Secretariat put on one of the most dominating performances in sports history, capturing horse racing's Triple Crown during a six-week span in May and June of that year. Sports Illustrated's Whitney Tower reported from the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes. In remembrance of Secretariat's remarkable feats, SI.com presents excerpts from Tower's dispatches:

On the morning of Preakness Day last week, Penny and Jack Tweedy sat at a dining-room table for two steeling themselves for the agonizing wait until the 5:40 post time. At a corner table for four, Lucien Laurin, Mrs. Tweedy's trainer, was hosting two nuns, Sister Yvonne and her friend Sister Bernadette. "Is this the prayer division of Meadow Stable?" Trainer Laurin was asked. "Well, you must admit," he replied with a grin, "it won't hurt."

Secretariat was born for speed.    (Neil Leifer)

That afternoon at Pimlico, there were the smiling and somewhat bewildered Sisters at their very first horse race, rubbing their clerical robes against legions of Meadow Stable owners and fans. And even they must have sensed nobody had a prayer of beating Mrs. Tweedy's Secretariat. With a Maryland racing record audience of 61,653 looking on, the magnificent chesnut struck down rival Sham for the second time in two weeks and ran two-thirds of the way to the Triple Crown. Just as in the Derby—which Sham's people felt he might have lost because of a mouth injury in the gate—the winning margin was 2 1/2 lengths. This time, there could be no excuse, not for Sham or any of the others in the field of six. If there are still any racegoers who are not convinced that Secretariat is the best 3-year-old in the land, one hardly knows where to search for them. And should they be found, June 9 will rout them all. That is the day when, by winning the mile-and-a-half Belmont Stakes, Secretariat will become only the ninth Triple Crown horse ever and the first since Citation achieved the feat 25 years ago.

Secretariat's Derby act seemed nearly impossible to follow, but his Preakness was no letdown. True, he broke no track record as he had at Churchill Downs, but he was sensational enough. His Preakness was the third fastest ever, and it demonstrated the tremendous versatility of the colt. In the Derby, Secretariat came from last place to nail Sham in the stretch. This time, just like his daddy Bold Ruler 16 years earlier, Secretariat was allowed to run on his own and he played catch-me-if-you-can masterfully.

ALSO IN 1973: Kentucky Derby | Belmont Stakes