Thoroughbred horse racing is a spectator sport in Australia, and gambling on horse races is a very popular pastime with A$14.3 billion wagered in 2009/10 with bookmakers and the Totalisator Agency Board (TAB). The two forms of Thoroughbred horseracing in Australia are flat racing, and races over fences or hurdles in Victoria and South Australia. Thoroughbred racing is the third most attended spectator sport in Australia, behind Australian rules football and rugby league, with almost two million admissions to 360 registered racecourses throughout Australia in 2009/10. Horseracing commenced soon after European settlement, and is now well-appointed with automatic totalizators, starting gates and photo finish cameras on nearly all Australian racecourses.
Bonecrusher was a champion New Zealand Thoroughbred racehorse who was widely admired in both Australia and New Zealand.
My Babu (1945–1970) was a French-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who became one of the most influential sires in American breeding of show jumpers, eventers and hunters. His descendants include Bruce Davidson's former eventing mount JJ Babu, Anky van Grunsven's dressage horse Bonfire, and puissance and grand prix jumper Sympatico. Also, the grand prix jumper Napur is related to him through his sire Damascus dam Kerala. My Babu was the sire of Kerala, and therefore one of Napur's grandsires.
Pure Steel is the only pacer to win the A G Hunter Cup, a race over 3,050 metres and the richest handicap race for pacers in the world, three times, in 1977, 1978, and 1980. He was the first Standardbred horse to win A$500,000 in Australia. Pure Steel also won the WA Benson & Hedges Cup four times. Affectionately known as Steelo or the "Tungsten Terror", he raced from 1974 until 1983 and won just under $1 million, at a time when competition was strong, with the great horses Paleface Adios and Hondo Grattan as competitors.
Star Kingdom (1946–1967) was a Thoroughbred race horse bred in Ireland in 1946. Exported to Australia, he was an outstanding sire, being the leading sire for five seasons, the leading sire of two-year-olds seven times as well as heading the broodmare sires' list three times.
Vo Rogue was an Australian Racing Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse. He was sired by American-bred Ivor Prince whose racing career ended from injury after just two starts. Ivor Prince was a son of the British champion Sir Ivor who won the 1968 2,000 Guineas and Epsom Derby. His American damsire, Dignitas, was a multiple stakes winner in the United States and was a son of the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Round Table. Vo Rogue was inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame in 2019.
Gay Crusader (1914–1932) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire who won a wartime version of the English Triple Crown in 1917. In a career which lasted from September 1916 to October 1917 he ran ten times and won eight races, including his last seven in succession. In addition to his three Classic wins he defeated older horses in the Newmarket Gold Cup and the Champion Stakes. Because of wartime restrictions, all of his races were at Newmarket Racecourse. After being injured in training in 1918 he was retired to stud, where his record was disappointing.
Rubiton was a champion Australian Thoroughbred racehorse of the mid-1980s.
WinStar Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding and racing farm near Versailles, Kentucky, owned by Kenny Troutt. It won the 2010 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Owner and 2016 Outstanding Breeder. WinStar Farm owned 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify, 2010 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver, 2010 Belmont Stakes winner Drosselmeyer, and 2016 Belmont Stakes winner Creator. Notable stallions that have stood at stud at Winstar Farm include two-time Breeders' Cup Classic winner Tiznow, leading sire and broodmare sire Distorted Humor, and Triple Crown and Breeders' Cup Classic winner American Pharoah's sire Pioneerof the Nile.
Northern Taste was a Canadian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who raced in France and who became one of the most successful and influential leading sires in Japanese racing history.
Forty Niner was an American champion thoroughbred racehorse and influential stallion.
Riverman was a French Thoroughbred racehorse.
Is It True was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He is best known for his win in the 1988 Breeders' Cup Juvenile.
Medaglia d'Oro is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won several major stakes races including the 2002 Travers Stakes and the 2003 Whitney Handicap. He also finished second in the 2002 Belmont Stakes, the Breeders' Cup Classic in both 2002 and 2003, and the 2004 Dubai World Cup. Since retiring to stud, he has become an excellent stallion whose progeny include 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra, two-time champion filly Songbird and two-time Hong Kong Horse of the Year Golden Sixty.
In Reality was an American bred racehorse. Bred in Florida, he was a son of Intentionally and out of the mare My Dear Girl, the 1959 American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly. His damsire was Santa Anita Derby winner Rough'n Tumble, who sired U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee Dr. Fager. In Reality is best remembered for his win in the Florida Derby and his runner-up performance in the Preakness Stakes to Eclipse Award Champion and millionaire Damascus.
Watling Street (1939–1953) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from spring 1941 to September 1942 he ran nine times and won four races. Having been rated the third best British two-year-old of his generation he went on to greater success as a three-year-old the following year when he won a wartime substitute version of The Derby and finished second in both the 2000 Guineas and the "New" St Leger. At the end of 1942 he was retired to a stud career of limited importance. He was eventually exported to the United States where he died in 1953.
Eurythmic (1916–1925) was a versatile Australian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who had the ability to produce a brilliant finishing run in staying races and he also won important sprint races, too. At four he won 12 of his 13 starts including the Caulfield Cup and Sydney Cup. When Eurythmic finished racing he was the greatest stake-winner in Australia. He was later inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame.
Minster Son was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from late summer 1987 until September 1988, he ran eight times and won five races. He recorded his most important success when winning the Classic St. Leger Stakes as a three-year-old in 1988, ridden by his breeder, Willie Carson. In the same year in which he also won the Newmarket Stakes, the Predominate Stakes and the Gordon Stakes. He was retired to stud following his St Leger victory.
Baldric was an American-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire, best known for winning the classic 2000 Guineas in 1964. When racing in Britain, the horse was known as Baldric II. Baldric won twice in 1963 but after being beaten on his three-year-old debut he started a 20/1 outsider for the 2000 Guineas. He won the race, the most valuable ever run in Britain, and went on to win the Prix Perth and the Champion Stakes in Autumn. After two unsuccessful runs in 1965, Baldric was retired to stud where he had success as a sire of winners in both France and Japan.
Pierro is a retired Australian racehorse who is now standing at stud. A bay horse, he stands at 16.1hh. He was from the fifth crop of the champion racehorse and stallion Lonhro out of the dam Miss Rite Note (IRE)(by Daylami). Pierro had a short racing career, racing in just two seasons and retiring to stud as a three-year-old. He ran in a total of 14 races, with 11 wins and 3 placings, including 5 Group 1 wins. His distances ranged from 1200m to 2040m. He was bred at Musk Creek Farm and sold for $230,000 in the Magic Millions sale. He was an unbeaten Triple Crown winner at 2 years, and a dual Group 1 winner at 3 years, earning him the title of both the highest rated Australian juvenile since 1977, and the highest rated 3yo sprinter in the world in 2013. He is now retired to stud at Coolmore, in Jerrys Plains of NSW, where he was purchased for $40 million. This has proved to be a very worthwhile investment for Coolmore thus far, as has had an illustrious career as a stallion to date, including four Group 1 winning progeny. He has had progeny sell for up to $1.1 million, highlighting the promising nature of his progeny for the years to come. His stud fee of $88,000 reflects his high quality characteristics on sale to any buyer who has a worthwhile mare and can afford the fee.
