{{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Bertrando , image = , caption = , sire =

Skywalker The Skywalker family is a fictional legendary human family in the '' Star Wars'' franchise. Within the series' fictional universe, the Skywalkers are presented as a bloodline with strong inherent capabilities related to the Force and sometimes ...

, dam = Gentle Hands , damsire = Buffalo Lark , sex =

Stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...

, foaled = 1989 , country = United States , colour = Dark Bay , breeder = Ed Nahem , owner = Ed Nahem &

505 Farms Marshall Naify (March 23, 1920 – April 19, 2000) was a motion picture and media tycoon who was a long-term chairman of the board of United Artists and later became founder and co-chairman of the board of Todd-AO, the largest independent post ...

, trainer =

Bruce Headley Bruce Edmund Headley (14 February 1934 – 15 January 2021) was a Thoroughbred horse trainer and owner. Biography Involved with horse racing since his teens, Headley worked as an exercise rider from 1949 until taking out his trainers license in 1 ...

Robert J. Frankel Robert Julian Frankel (July 9, 1941 – November 16, 2009) was an American thoroughbred race horse trainer whom ESPN called "one of the most successful and respected trainers in the history of thoroughbred racing."Privman, Jay"Robert Frankel Dies ...

(from late 1992)
John Shirreffs (1994) , record = 24: 9-6-2 , earnings = $3,185,610 , race = Del Mar Futurity (1991)
Norfolk Stakes (1991)

San Felipe Stakes The San Felipe Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade II event open to three-year-old horses. Normally held in early -March, it is raced at a distance of one and one ...

(1992)
San Fernando Stakes (1993)
Woodward Stakes (1993)

Pacific Classic Stakes The Pacific Classic Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds and older over a distance of one and one quarter miles on the dirt track scheduled annually in August at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The even ...

(1993)

Goodwood Breeders' Cup Handicap The Awesome Again Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for horses aged three years old or older over the distance of one and one-eighth miles on the dirt scheduled annually in September at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. T ...

(1994)
Wickerr Handicap (1994) , awards = U.S. Champion Older Male Horse (1993)

California Horse of the Year The California Horse of the Year is an American horse racing honor awarded annually since 1973 by the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association (CTBA) to a Thoroughbred racehorse bred in the state of California. Winners *2021 - Lieutenant Dan * ...

(1993) , honours = , updated= April 2, 2014 Bertrando (February 18, 1989 – March 27, 2014)Bertrando, Champion and Top CA Sire, Dies
/ref> was an American Thoroughbred Champion

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

. A tall colt that grew to 16

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2 inches, Bertrando was bred by Ed Nahem at

River Edge Farm Martin J. Wygod (born February 1, 1940) is an American businessman and a prominent Thoroughbred racehorse owner/breeder. Business career A business administration graduate from New York University, he joined a Wall Street stock brokerage firm b ...

in Buellton, California. He was sired by

, that won the 1986 Breeders' Cup Classic. Nahem began racing Bertrando in a three-way partnership with Marshall Naify's 505 Farms of

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

, and Gus Headley, son of the horse's trainer,

. En route to being voted California Champion two-year-old colt, Bertrando won the important Del Mar Futurity and the Grade I Norfolk Stakes, one of the final preparatory races for two-year-olds going into the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. In that race, the most important of the year, Bertrando broke quickly and took an early lead. Then, from the back of the 14-horse field, the French colt Arazi began making a move. In what a 2006 National Thoroughbred Racing Association

article Article often refers to: * Article (grammar), a grammatical element used to indicate definiteness or indefiniteness * Article (publishing), a piece of nonfictional prose that is an independent part of a publication Article may also refer to: G ...

called "the single-most spectacular performance in Breeders' Cup history", Arazi wove between horses and with two furlongs to run passed Bertrando to win

Racing in California in 1992, the three-year-old Bertrando won the

and was second to

A.P. Indy A.P. Indy (March 31, 1989 – February 21, 2020) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Belmont Stakes and Breeders' Cup Classic on his way to American Horse of the Year honors in 1992. His time in the Belmont Stakes tied Easy Goer for ...

in the Santa Anita Derby. As a result of a respiratory system virus, the colt did not compete in any of the U.S. Triple Crown races. While Bertrando was sidelined for several months, Gus Headley was bought out of the partnership, and

took over as Bertrando's trainer. Near the end of the year, Bertrando returned to compete in the Malibu Stakes, finishing third. Although his 1992 performances were limited, he earned California Champion three-year-old colt honors. At age four, 1993 was Bertrando's best year in racing. He won the San Fernando Stakes, the Woodward Stakes by 13½ lengths, and, while winning the

, broke the track record for 1¼ miles at the Del Mar Racetrack. He also finished second in the

Hollywood Gold Cup The Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles on the dirt held at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California in May. The race currently offers a purse of $400,000. ...

, Metropolitan Handicap, and Breeders' Cup Classic. In the Classic, he appeared to have the race won when longshot Arcangues came from behind to claim victory. Bertrando's 1993 performances earned him that year's U.S. Eclipse Award for Outstanding Older Male Horse and the

title. Following arthroscopic surgery on a knee, Bertrando returned to race again at age five. He won the 1994

Wickerr Stakes The Wickerr Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid-July at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A restricted stakes, it is limited to horses age three and older that are Non-Winners Of A Sweepstakes Of $50,000 Othe ...

and

. In his third attempt to win a Breeders' Cup race, he entered the 1994 Classic, where he finished sixth. After two unplaced showings in 1995, Bertrando was retired to River Edge Farm in Buellton, California, where he became a successful sire of a number of stakes-race winners. Bertrando is a direct sire-line descendant of Man o' War through his son

War Relic War Relic (1938–1963) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Background A homebred of Samuel D. Riddle, his sire was Man o' War who was ranked #1 in the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century. His dam wa ...

. He died from infirmities of old age on March 27, 2014.

References

Bertrando's pedigree and racing stats

* ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SMQUzR7H_A The 1991 Breeders' Cup Juvenileon YouTube 1989 racehorse births 2014 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in California Racehorses trained in the United States Eclipse Award winners Thoroughbred family 4-r Godolphin Arabian sire line