Stevie Wonderboy

Stevie Wonderboy
Sire	Stephen Got Even
Grandsire	A.P. Indy
Dam	Heat Lightning
Damsire	Summer Squall
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	2003
Country	United States
Colour	Chestnut
Breeder	John Gunther, Tony Holmes, Walter Zent
Owner	Merv Griffin Ranch Company
Trainer	Doug O'Neill
Record	6: 3-2-1
Earnings	$1,058,940
Major wins
	Del Mar Futurity (2005); Breeders' Cup Juvenile (2005)
Awards
	United States Champion 2-Yr-Old Colt (2005)
	Last updated on June 11, 2007

Last updated June 04, 2019

Stevie Wonderboy (foaled 2003 in Kentucky) is a retired Thoroughbred race horse.

Kentucky, officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state located in the east south-central region of the United States. Although styled as the "State of Kentucky" in the law creating it, (because in Kentucky's first constitution, the name state was used) Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth. Originally a part of Virginia, in 1792 Kentucky split from it and became the 15th state to join the Union. Kentucky is the 37th most extensive and the 26th most populous of the 50 United States.

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. Thoroughbreds are considered "hot-blooded" horses that are known for their agility, speed, and spirit.

Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic premise – to identify which of two or more horses is the fastest over a set course or distance – has been unchanged since at least classical antiquity.

Background

Stevie Wonderboy is owned by the Merv Griffin Ranch Company. He was bred in Kentucky by John Gunther, Tony Holmes and Walter Zent. He was trained by Doug O'Neill, in all of his lifetime starts and was ridden by Garrett Gomez. Stevie Wonderboy is the son of Stephen Got Even out of the mare Heat Lightning, a daughter of the Storm Bird colt, Summer Squall. His grandsire is U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, A.P. Indy.

Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. was an American television host and media mogul. He began his career as a radio and big band singer who went on to appear in film and on Broadway. From 1965 to 1986, Griffin hosted his own talk show, The Merv Griffin Show. He also created the internationally popular game shows Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune through his television production companies, Merv Griffin Enterprises and Merv Griffin Entertainment.

Douglas F. "Doug" O'Neill is an American Thoroughbred horse trainer. He was born in Dearborn, Michigan, and resides in California, where he trained the 2012 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner, I'll Have Another, and 2016 Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist. O'Neill and his family reside in Santa Monica, California.

Storm Bird was a Canadian-bred, Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was the outstanding European two-year-old of 1980, when he was unbeaten in five races, including the Anglesey Stakes, National Stakes, and Dewhurst Stakes. His subsequent career was disrupted by injury and illness, and he was well beaten in his only race of 1981. He was then retired to stud, where he became a successful breeding stallion.

His breeding line includes such notable horses as Secretariat, Seattle Slew, Bold Ruler and Northern Dancer.

Secretariat was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who, in 1973, became the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years. His record-breaking victory in the Belmont Stakes, which he won by 31 lengths, is widely regarded as one of the greatest races of all time. During his racing career, he won five Eclipse Awards, including Horse of the Year honors at ages two and three. He was elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1974. In the List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century, Secretariat is second only to Man o' War, who also was a large chestnut colt given the nickname "Big Red".

Seattle Slew American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Seattle Slew was an American Thoroughbred race horse who won the Triple Crown in 1977 — the tenth of thirteen horses to accomplish the feat. He is one of two horses to have won the Triple Crown while having been undefeated in any previous race; the second was Justify, who won the Triple Crown in 2018 and who is descended from Seattle Slew. Honored as the 1977 Horse of the Year, he was also a champion at ages two, three, and four. In the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century Seattle Slew was ranked ninth.

Bold Ruler was an American Thoroughbred Hall of Fame racehorse who was named the 1957 Horse of the Year after a three-year-old campaign that included wins in the Preakness Stakes and Trenton Handicap, in which he defeated fellow Hall of Fame inductees Round Table and Gallant Man. He was also named American Champion Sprinter at age four. On retirement, he became the leading sire in North America eight times between 1963 and 1973, the most of any sire in the twentieth century. He is now best known as the sire of Triple Crown winner Secretariat, and was also the grandsire of Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew. He was an outstanding sire of sires, whose modern descendants include many classic winners such as California Chrome.

Racing career

Competing in 2005, his performances that year, capped off by a win in the fall's Breeders' Cup Juvenile, earned him the Eclipse Award for Outstanding 2-Year-Old Male Horse. Going into the 2006 racing season he was expected to be a contender for the U.S. Triple Crown. However, on February 7, 2006, it was announced that Stevie Wonderboy had suffered a hairline fracture in his ankle. On February 8, a screw was inserted into his leg to correct the fracture. The announcement was made that he would not race in the Kentucky Derby or any of the Triple Crown races. In July 2007, it was announced that Stevie Wonderboy had retired.

The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The current purse is $2,000,000, making it the most valuable race for two-year-olds in North America. It is normally run at a distance of 1 ¹⁄₁₆ miles.

Kentucky Derby American stakes race for Thoroughbreds, part of the Triple Crown

The Kentucky Derby is a horse race that is held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of one and a quarter miles (2.0 km) at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds and fillies 121 pounds.

Races

2006

2nd, San Rafael Stakes, Grade II, Santa Anita Park, January 14, 2006

The San Rafael Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run at Santa Anita Park, located in Arcadia, California. The race was a Grade III event with a purse of $150,000 and was open to three-year-olds willing to race one mile on the facility's dirt race track.

Santa Anita Park thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States

Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during the winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races including both the Santa Anita Derby and the Santa Anita Handicap as well as hosting the Breeders' Cup in 1986, 1993, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2016. In 2011, The Stronach Group became the owner.

2005

1st, Breeders' Cup Juvenile, Grade I, Belmont Park, October 29, 2005.
1st, Del Mar Futurity, Grade II, Del Mar Racetrack, September 7, 2005.
1st, Maiden, Del Mar Racetrack, August 6, 2005.
3rd, Hollywood Juvenile Championship Stakes, Grade III, Hollywood Park Racetrack, July 16, 2005.
2nd, Maiden, Hollywood Park Racetrack, June 18, 2005.

Belmont Park is a major Thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. Opened 114 years ago on May 4, 1905, it is operated by the non-profit New York Racing Association, as are Aqueduct and Saratoga Race Course. The group was formed in 1955 as the Greater New York Association to assume the assets of the individual associations that ran Belmont, Aqueduct, Saratoga, and the now-defunct Jamaica Race Course.

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 dirt and currently offers a purse of $300,000.

The Hollywood Juvenile Championship Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early July at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. Open to two-year-old horses, the Grade III event is contested on synthetic over a distance of six furlongs. Prior to 2007, the race was contested on dirt.

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References

Stevie Wonderboy's pedigree and racing stats

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