Bet Twice (April 20, 1984 – March 5, 1999) was a multi-millionaire

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

thoroughbred 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 ...

racehorse and sire. Foaled in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, he was out of the mar
Golden Dust
and was sired b
Sportin' Life
who in turn was the son of the British Triple Crown champion

Nijinsky Vaslav (or Vatslav) Nijinsky (; rus, Вацлав Фомич Нижинский, Vatslav Fomich Nizhinsky, p=ˈvatsləf fɐˈmʲitɕ nʲɪˈʐɨnskʲɪj; pl, Wacław Niżyński, ; 12 March 1889/18908 April 1950) was a ballet dancer and choreog ...

. He was bred by William S. Farish III and E. J. Hudson and born on what became Lane's End Farm in

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles () is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 9,316 according to 2017 cen ...

Two-year-old season

Bet Twice was owned by a syndicate of approximately three dozen that included baseball players

Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (born April 14, 1941), also known by his nickname "Charlie Hustle", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Rose played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a membe ...

and

Garry Maddox Garry Lee Maddox (born September 1, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player and business entrepreneur. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from to . Maddox began his career with the San Francisco Giants but, ...

. His principal shareholder was Robert Levy, the owner of

Atlantic City Race Course The Atlantic City Race Course (ACRC), formerly the Atlantic City Race Track, was a Thoroughbred horse race track located in the Mays Landing section of Hamilton Township, in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The track is located off th ...

. As a two-year-old, Bet Twice won the grade one Laurel Futurity and

Arlington-Washington Futurity Stakes The Arlington-Washington Futurity is a Listed horse race for Thoroughbred two-year-olds. It is scheduled to run at a distance of one mile on the turf at Arlington Park, Arlington Heights, Illinois every fall and as at 2020 offers a purse of $100 ...

and the grade two

Sapling Stakes The Sapling Stakes is an American Ungraded Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early September at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, New Jersey. Open to 2-year-olds, it was raced on dirt over a distance of six furlongs for a current purse of $100,000 ...

Three-year-old season

Early in his three-year-old season, Bet Twice won the grade two Fountain of Youth Stakes on the road to the Triple Crown. He met a crop of talented horses in that three-year-old year, including

Gulch In xeric lands, a gulch is a deep V-shaped valley formed by erosion. It may contain a small stream or dry creek bed and is usually larger in size than a gully. Sudden intense rainfall upstream may produce flash floods in the bed of the gulch. ...

and

Cryptoclearance Cryptoclearance (April 9, 1984 in Kentucky – September 24, 2009) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Florida Derby in 1987 and the Hawthorne Gold Cup in 1988 and 1999. Racing career Trained by future Hall of Fame trainer Sc ...

; however, his rivalry with Kentucky Derby and

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () o ...

winner

Alysheba Alysheba (March 3, 1984 – March 27, 2009) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that won two legs of the Triple Crown in 1987. A successful sire, he produced 11 stakes winners. A bay colt, Alysheba was sired by Alydar out of the mare Bel ...

was most famous. He faced the other colt nine times, beating him three times (Alysheba won four times, while neither horse won in their other two meetings). Bet Twice and Alysheba battled down the stretch in what many consider one of the most physical Derbies ever. Alysheba prevailed by a half length over Bet Twice with both colts almost two and a half length in front of the rest of the field. In the

, Bet Twice was listed at post time as the fourth choice at 5-1. He broke sharply and was third going into the first turn. He was up with the leaders when he was floated out wide. Approaching the stretch, the colt took the lead from Lookingforthebigone and Alysheba. In the closing moments of the race, Alysheba rallied, and Bet Twice lost by a half length again. In third and fourth were Cryptoclearance and Gulch respectively. Bet Twice may be best known for his victory in the 1987 Belmont Stakes. Ridden by

Craig Perret Craig Perret (born February 2, 1951, in New Orleans, Louisiana) is an American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He began riding horses at age five and by seven was riding quarter horses in match races. At age fifteen he began his career in tho ...

and trained by

Jimmy Croll Warren A. Croll, Jr. (March 9, 1920 – June 6, 2008), best known as Jimmy Croll, was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred race horse trainer. Croll was born in 1920 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. After finishing high school, he attended the U ...

, he won by 14 lengths and denied

the

Triple Crown Triple Crown may refer to: Sports Horse racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States) ** Triple Crown Trophy ** Triple Crown Productions * Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Tri ...

. By virtue of his victory in the Belmont and runner-up performances in the

and the Kentucky Derby, he edged out Alysheba for the first ever $1,000,000 Chrysler Triple Crown Bonus as the top performing three-year-old in the Triple Crown series. Bet Twice then won the

Haskell Invitational The Haskell Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run over a distance of miles on the dirt held annually in July at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. The event is a signature event at Monmouth ...

Monmouth Park Monmouth Park Racetrack is an American race track for thoroughbred horse racing in Oceanport, New Jersey, United States. It is owned by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and is operated under a five-year lease as a partnership with ...

over Alysheba. He also finished ahead of Alysheba in the

Travers Stakes The Travers Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is nicknamed the "Mid-Summer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds acco ...

Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting venue of any kind in the country, but is actu ...

, though both horses finished in mid-pack behind

Java Gold Java Gold (1984–2009) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won three Grade 1 races and sired two Champions. Bred by Paul Mellon, and raced by his Rokeby Stables, Java Gold notably won the 1986 Remsen Stakes at age two with Jerry Bailey ...

on the sloppy track.

Four-year-old season

When Bet Twice was four, his connections accepted an invitation to run him in the first revival of the $500,000 Grade I

Pimlico Special The Pimlico Special is a Grade 3 American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles ( furlongs) held at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland in mid May. The race currently offers a purse of $300,000. ...

Handicap at "Old Hilltop" in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. He entered that race as the post-time fourth choice at odds of 7-1 in a field of seven graded stakes winners, including Crytoclearance. Going into the famous "club house turn" at

Pimlico Race Course Pimlico Race Course is a thoroughbred horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of Ol ...

, Oaklawn Handicap winner Lost Code led the field, followed by local favorite Little Bold John and dual classic winner

. Then, on the far turn, Bet Twice weaved through traffic and moved between horses to challenge for the lead. Coming down the stretch, he drifted out and brushed Lost Code. Then he drew off and won by 3/4 lengths. The time for the Grade I race at 1 3/16 miles was 1:54 1/5. Later that year, Bet Twice had runner-up finishes in the Grade I Philip H. Iselin Handicap, the Grade III

Ben Ali Stakes The Ben Ali Stakes is an American race for thoroughbred horses run in the Spring of each year at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky. For 4-year-olds and up, it is a Grade III event set at a distance of one mile and one eighth mile on t ...

and the Grade III Salvator Mile. He also had show performances in the Grade I Suburban Handicap and the Grade I

United Nations Handicap The United Nations Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds and older run over a distance of one and three-eighth miles on the turf held annually in July at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. The event ...

Retirement

Bet Twice stood at stud for six years at Muirfield Farm from 1990 through 1996. He was pensioned from stud duty at age 12. On March 5, 1999, he died at Muirfield East in

at age 15.

Resources

Pedigree & Partial Stats

External links

Video at YouTube of Bet Twice winning the 1988 Pimlico Special
{{Belmont Stakes Winners 1984 racehorse births 1999 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Belmont Stakes winners American Grade 1 Stakes winners Thoroughbred family 9-f