It looked like Turcotte was playing with Tentam. He'd let him get up close, then show Secretariat the whip and boom, three lengths clear again.

@@johnhunter2294 No doubt, he knew Red had endless gears if he needed them.

I don’t think secretariat saw a whip at the Preakness or Belmont

@@N.S.56 Not sure about the Preakness if there was very little from Ron Turcot but I’ve never saw whip used on the Belmont

@@N.S.56 Never used the whip when he got beat 4 times.

Thought that too. A whale of a race by TimTam, but every time his nose got beside Big Red's rump, he shifted into that phantom gear.

Tentam, an outstanding racehorse and up to that point the top turf horse in North America, was completely overshadowed by a genetic freak.

Tentam was not "the top turf horse in North America" as Secretariat beat Tentam in the Man O' War on turf. I suppose most great athletes could be described genetic freaks by those jealous of their success. Because in most sports the great athletes do not share physical attributes of the general population.

@@ValleyoftheRogue He swatted him away like a fly ... and Tentam was five lengths clear of everyone else. Big Red might have been a better turf horse.

It’s called a 22 pound heart

He does look like he's just galloping and it looks like he's running for pure pleasure...what a beautiful and exciting athlete to watch perfect his art.

Nothing is impossible. This was one of God's creatures. He surely can make an even better one. We may not live to see it but one day....

@@nittydalion Not happening, ever. Secretariat was sired by the greatest thoroughbred sire of all time, Bold Ruler, and there is not another Bold Ruler, though descendant A.P. Indy has made a big impact in the breed. Secretariat was a genetic freak and will never, ever be duplicated again. He had a full sister who had no racing ability at all.

@@ValleyoftheRogue never say never. Close mindedness is a sin in my book. And your statement can't be proven unless you live forever to see every horse ever.

@@ValleyoftheRogue They said that about Man O War too. But we ended up with a Secretariat anyway. You can't predict nature.

I think you have it backwards, Turcotte has said that Secretariat dictated his own race, Turcotte was just along for the ride 😉

@@Makado14 Not here. Turcotte said in an interview that they're playing with the field here. Every time Tentam came in close at a certain distance Secretariat would pull away, Turcott during this time made a recent discovery that Secretariat was actually 10 to 15 Lengths faster on turf than on dirt. Can read the article here about the whole event www.nyra.com/belmont/news/man-o%E2%80%99war-stakes-win-proved-secretariat%E2%80%99s-supremacy-on-turf

.

kzfaq.info/get/bejne/e9ecnLGL29Sqn3k.html

@@Ghostridercdn Great on turf too a real champion.

Turcotte thought Secretarait was 10-15 lengths better on grass than dirt.

He was 1973 horse of the year on turf

Wasted potential :/

I always thought that. I mentioned somewhere else that they had to change his saddle belt between the Derby and the Preakness because he was still growing. Such a shame he never raced as a 4YO.

@@wmg5852 no kidding. Can you imagine what he would have done as a fully mature horse?

100% agree, and it would have shut up all of the naysayers against Secretariat - permanently...

@@wmg5852 100% agree, but the Meadow, Penny, et al, had their backs against the wall, from what I read. They had to syndicate him in order to pay the estate taxes due, and save the barn.

Turcott said Secretariat was 10 to 15 Lengths better on Turf... He could not believe it. ..he and Secretariat are playing here, he recalled in an interview

Yes, that race in late October 1973, at the Woodbine Race Track is now the stuff of legend. It was a cold and damp day, but the crowds still came out to see Secretariat run one last time. I always thought that the lovely Penny Chenery (Secretariat's owner) decided to make Canada the last place Secretariat would race, was (at least in part) due to the fact that both Ron Turcotte and Lucien Laurin (two of her closet team members) were citizens of Canada. I am sure you have seen it, but (for those who may not know) there is a wonderful documentary out here on KZfaq, called "Secretariat's Last Race." It nicely captures the huge excitement and interest which revolved around this day. Cheers to all from Niagara Canada!

Ron Turcotte admitted he was doing that on purpose. He would ease Secretariat, just enough for Tentam to get close, then accelerate Secretariat each time to pull away. He set a world record despite doing that.

@@nthdegree1269 And Tentam wasn't a bad horse at all; he was a three-time Grade I stakes winner and was the world record holder for a mile and an eighth on turf. And Secretariat played with him like a yo-yo.

@@johnhunter2294 Tentam was considered the top grass horse in North America up to this point.

@@ValleyoftheRogue Tentam was an outstanding horse, but he was up against the greatest of all time. Turcotte has said that Secretariat was two to three seconds faster on turf than he was on dirt; that would mean he could possibly have run a 2:21 mile and a half, which would be a world record as untouchable as his 2:24 Belmont.

*was*

Older and had the world record....until he met Secretariat, who According to Turcotte around this time discovered Secretariat was 10 to 15 Lengths better on Turf, which is mindboggling. He played here, pulling Secretariat back then pulling away, cat and mouse game. He was amazed at Secretariat on Turf he felt that confident to do something like that against that type of field. It's really amazing

That was the same year Bob Gibson lost in the final game to the Detroit Tigers in game 7 of the world series .He may of had the best year to you but when they needed him in game 7 he lost to the Tigers Oh ya Denny McClain won(incredibly) 31 games And lost (Incredibly 6 games) that year the last pitcher to win over 30 games.I would of love to see your Secretariat run against the last triple crown winner of England Nijinsky on turf who won the triple crown in 1970.There is no way you can say one horse is better than another if they haven't raced against each other.Different times in history and different tracks ran on

@@fklifter1 I'm not sure you got my point. Sorry. Let me make this as clear as possible: I'm saying as great as Gibson was (1.12ERA), he lost a bunch of games. And the 7th game he lost to the Tigers, his defense let him down; if his team can't catch a catchable ball, what exactly do you want him to do? And just so you know, I was rooting for the Tigers, so I was happy he lost! I also said the 3 greatest horses I've ever seen.

US Turf racing in the 70s was very average but agree with you're comments. Secretariat was the best I've ever seen on dirt his times in all triple crown races were records and the belmont might never be beat? thought slew was a real special horse too just behind big red.

Amazing, he looked like he was just coasting for most of the way. Tentam, I believe, was a champion on turf. Could you imagine what the time would have been if he was really going full out?

When I see races where horse’s finish a race riderless, perhaps winning that race, it makes me wonder. Yeah, training plays a part but that horse didn’t need to be whipped to run or win.

It was 2:24 4/5 for a mile and a half on turf, which is quite a bit faster than dirt. But, that being said, he did it without much effort. Look at him at the finish; his head is still down and not bobbing, his strides are still long. He's not tired. He could've gone MUCH faster if he'd needed to.

As great as Zenyatta was, she wouldn't be within two time zones of Secretariat. The only one that would even come close would be Spectacular Bid.

She was a mare, for God's sake. Cut her a break!

At every single distance from 5.5 furlongs to a mile and five eighths, Secretariat is FASTER. End of story. Their best times are: 5.5 furlongs: Sec 1:03 2/5 (estimated Belmont time, a fifth either way maybe), MOW 1:05 3/5 6 furlongs: Sec 1:09 2/5 (Belmont fraction), MOW 1:11 1/5 Mile: Sec 1:33 2/5, MOW 1:35 4/5 1 1/8: Sec 1:45 2/5, MOW 1:49 1/5 1 3/16: Sec 1:53, MOW 1:56 3/5 1 1/4: Sec 1:59 (Belmont fraction), MOW 2:01 4/5 1 1/2: Sec 2:24 (world record that still stands), MOW 2:28 4/5 (would probably have been around 2:27 in the Belmont for 1 1/2) 1 5/8: Sec 2:37 3/5 (unofficial world record in the Belmont), MOW 2:40 4/5

Not this race but Beyer said he would have given him the highest ever recorded for the Belmont. This race is probably a close second.

From Andrew Beyer, "Years later, when my speed-figure methods had matured, I revisited the data from the day of the 1973 Belmont and tried to produce a figure that would relate to my present-day numbers. I calculated that Secretariat had earned a 139, a figure that no horse after him has ever approached. (The best Beyer Speed Figure in the last two decades was Ghostzapper's 128 in 2004.)"

It was 139 for his Belmont win

This was only four-fifths slower than the Belmont, so I would guess it to be in the mid-130s. I don't know if there's an adjustment for turf, but it would almost have to be 130+ no matter what the surface was.

Secretariat had the habit of leaning against the back wall in the gate; if they could have trained that out of him he would've been even faster, as hard as that is to imagine.

Great yes, but all the stats point to Big Red beating Man O’ War.

Really? Really?

@@michaelgoodale655 man o war is great but secretariats time says other wise

@@kendallfaithj9645 At every single distance from 5.5 furlongs to a mile and five eighths, Secretariat is faster. Their best times are: 5.5 furlongs: Sec 1:03 2/5 (estimated Belmont time, a fifth either way maybe), MOW 1:05 3/5 6 furlongs: Sec 1:09 2/5 (Belmont fraction), MOW 1:11 1/5 Mile: Sec 1:33 2/5, MOW 1:35 4/5 1 1/8: Sec 1:45 2/5, MOW 1:49 1/5 1 3/16: Sec 1:53, MOW 1:56 3/5 1 1/4: Sec 1:59 (Belmont fraction), MOW 2:01 4/5 1 1/2: Sec 2:24 (world record that still stands), MOW 2:28 4/5 (would probably have been around 2:27 in the Belmont for 1 1/2) 1 5/8: Sec 2:37 3/5 (unofficial world record in the Belmont), MOW 2:40 4/5 MOW was the best of his time, to be sure, and arguably the most important sire of the 20th century, but Secretariat would have run him off the track at any distance.

@@johnhunter2294 Run him off the track is a bit bombastic.

Oh, please. Frankel never raced 12 furlongs at three (or ever). You've no idea if he could have or not.

Frankel was the king of 1 mile races.Secretariat ran the mile two times that year, and ...faster than Frankel's best! Two great horses but the chronos speaks for themselves.

Frankel wouldn't belong on the same track with Secretariat. What people can't seem to understand is Secretariat was a true genetic freak. We will never, ever see another one like him.

@@alca29 And remember, Secretariat did it DECADES before.

Oooh, the audacity!! Those were all great horses, but their records can also fall apart on closer inspection, especially Frankel (who never raced beyond a mile in his five starts at age three, and only two of those were in open company) and Ribot (five of his six three-year-old starts came in tier 2 post WWII Italy). Sea Bird was the best of those you mentioned, in my opinion, but still raced only five times at three (and only two of those were open), compared to Secretariat's 12 starts (five in open company). Had Sea Bird (or Frankel) raced 12 times at three, do you really believe he would still have been undefeated at three? It's really a shame Secretariat was not able to race at four, because if his sire and damsire give us any indication, he would have been even better. Being undefeated is partly skill and partly luck, and is a foolish sole basis for superiority. And if you maintain that the Belmont is the only race in which Secretariat demonstrated superior ability, you are just showing your ignorance.

@@profsdottir The Belmont is the one race he earned a Timeform provisional rating of 144. The other races may have been high 130s. If we're comparing all these beasts as 3 year olds (and assuming they're drug free, which is very questionable in the 1970s) then I agree, Frankel has competition. He ran to 143 in the QEII. And no horse in history could have done what he did in the Guineas. Ribot was rated mid 130s, yet considered hugely underrated. Seabird is out on his own at 145 - his Arc was simply majestic. Brigadier was low 140s and Secretariat on the back of one performance, was 144. He met open company over the exact same course and distance and got exposed once a bit of pressure was applied to him - so even the 144 should be taken with some hesitancy. Even still, he was a monster and worthy of his place with all four of our European Titans But as older horses - on the only evidence we have available - if all 5 horses where to meet over 1m2f, odds would look something like this: Frankel 4/9F Seabird 5/2 Ribot 4/1 Secretariat 6/1 Brigadier Gerrard 7/1

@@leesog3203 Timeform did not rate Us horses in the 1970's, and latter day assessments should be taken with a grain of salt, as any comparisons between decades, countries and racing surfaces should, including yours and mine. Any ratings system (including Beyer) will have some bias, intentional or not (most likely not), as human beings are conducting them. I have seen dozens of seven furlong or one mile races, some of them even group or grade 1, where a horse takes a commanding lead and ends up winning by virtue of their early turn of foot. These are very good horses, to be sure, but the best ever? And the hyperbole (not yours, but published various places) of saying that he beat a "top class field of milers" in the Guineas is just too much. This was an age restricted race. which had some horses that had won age-restricted races. Except for Casemento, who won the RPT at two, there were scant G1 winners (even age-restricted G1) in the Guineas other than Frankel. Dubawi Gold never won a Group 1 in his career. Now, all of this doesn't mean I don't think Frankel was remarkable when he raced. It's just that his career was, shall we say, a somewhat protected one. And that, and his talent, is why he finished his career undefeated. Finally, your allusion to drugging is unnecessary and reveals the uncertainty of your claim. There is no magic "drug free" barrier around the British Isles or anywhere else, and too many drugs now and certainly in 2011 and 2012 that are undetectable. Stud fees now are through the roof for successful milers, and the temptation to "help" a good horse appeal to future breeders has never been greater. Secretariat had already been syndicated before his three year old season, so the pressure of selling his breeding rights was gone before he stepped foot on the track in 1973. I think one could make a stronger argument for Frankel's having benefited from "help," but I prefer to take him as he was and not believe he was drugged. Just maybe not as challenged as he could have been.

He raced twice when sick and knocked back to second on bogus interference ruling.

Frankel ran mostly 1,600m (1 mile) , Secretariat ran that distance only two times and did better chronos (champagne stakes and gotham stakes) ok it was on dirt,so look at the race above and the longest of Frankel (2000m) and check the chronos...like Chic Anderson said... ''he's all alone!''