The Marlboro Cup Invitational Handicap was a

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 c ...

horse race 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 p ...

first run in September 1973 at

Belmont Park 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. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Racin ...

Elmont, New York Elmont is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in northwestern Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, United States, along its border with the borough of Queens in New York City. The population was 35,265 at the ...

. A

Grade 1 First grade (also called Grade One, called ''Year 2'' in England or Primary 2 in Scotland) is the first grade in elementary school and the first school year after kindergarten. Children are usually 6–7 years old in this grade. Examples by re ...

race for horses 3 years old and up, it was raced over a distance of miles on a dirt track. The race came into existence as a result of the huge popularity of

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who is the ninth winne ...

, who in 1973 became the first U.S. Triple Crown champion in twenty-five years. Such was the drawing power of Secretariat that

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

television readily agreed to broadcast the race nationally, a rare occurrence at the time for a non-Triple Crown or traditional "classic" event (such as the

Travers Stakes The Travers Stakes is an American 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 according to internation ...

). Originally conceived as a

match race A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head. In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consis ...

with Secretariat's stablemate and 1972

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

winner

Riva Ridge Riva Ridge (April 13, 1969 – April 21, 1985) was a Thoroughbred racehorse, the winner of the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes in 1972. Often remembered simply as a stablemate of Secretariat, Riva Ridge was a successful racehorse in his own rig ...

, it was changed to an invitational race that brought together the top horses 3 years of age and older. In the inaugural race, Secretariat set a

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

time for miles on dirt while winning by lengths on a track officially rated as being only "good". The race became a very important annual event and 1978 marked the first of only two times in racing history that two American Triple Crown winners met in a single race, with

Seattle Slew Seattle Slew (February 15, 1974 – May 7, 2002) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who became the tenth winner of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States), American Triple Crown (1977). He is one of only ...

, the 1977 champion, defeating the 1978 champion

Affirmed Affirmed (February 21, 1975 – January 12, 2001) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the eleventh winner of the American Triple Crown. Affirmed was well known for his famous rivalry with Alydar, whom he met ten times, includi ...

by three lengths. (The two met again in that year's edition of the Jockey Club Gold Cup; Seattle Slew lost by a nose to

Exceller Exceller (May 12, 1973 – April 7, 1997) is widely considered one of the best horses to race in the United States not to win a year-end championship. Despite his exemplary achievements as a racehorse, and his unique accomplishment in being the ...

, while Affirmed finished up the track due to a slipped saddle.) For many years the Marlboro Cup was part of Belmont Park's Fall Championship meet and the track's owner, the

New York Racing Association The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) is the not-for-profit corporation that operates the three largest Thoroughbred horse racing tracks in the state of New York, United States: Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Queens; Belmont Park ...

, created a Fall Championship Series consisting of the

Woodward Stakes The Woodward Stakes is an American Grade I stakes race and is one of the premier races for older thoroughbred horses in the United States. It is named for prominent racehorse owner William Woodward. The race was first run in 1954 at Aqueduct Rac ...

, followed by the Marlboro Cup, and then the

Jockey Club Gold Cup The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It has traditionally been the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the sp ...

. In 1984,

Slew o' Gold Slew o' Gold (April 19, 1980 – October 14, 2007) was an American thoroughbred racehorse who was voted the 1983 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Three-Year-Old Male Horse and the 1984 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Older Male Horse. Background ...

became the first horse to win the Fall Series for which he received a $1,000,000 bonus. CBS and later

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

continued to broadcast the Marlboro into the 1980s. The advent of the

Breeders' Cup The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, ...

races in 1984 marked the beginning of the end for the Marlboro Cup. In 1987, the 15th edition of the race attracted just five horses and was picked up for broadcast on

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with broa ...

only.''Anchorage Daily News'' – September 21, 1987
/ref>

Records

Speed record: * 1:45.40 @ 1-1/8 miles:

(1973) (new stakes, track, and

) * 2:00.00 @ 1-1/4 miles: Turkoman (1986) Most wins: * No horse won this race more than once. Most wins by a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

: * 3 –

Jacinto Vásquez Jacinto Vásquez (born January 4, 1944 in Panama) is a retired Hall of Fame thoroughbred jockey. He rode two Kentucky Derby winners, Foolish Pleasure in 1975 and the filly Genuine Risk in 1980. He was also the regular jockey for the champion filly ...

(1977, 1982, 1983) Most wins by a trainer: * 2 –

MacKenzie Miller MacKenzie "Mack" Todd Miller (October 16, 1921 – December 10, 2010) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer and owner/breeder. During his forty-six-year career, he conditioned seventy-two stakes winners, including four Eclipse Award cha ...

(1980, 1987) Most wins by an owner: * 2 –

Rokeby Stables Rokeby Stables was an American thoroughbred racehorse breeding farm in Upperville, Virginia, involved with both steeplechase and flat racing. The operation was established in the late 1940s by Paul Mellon (1907–1999) who won the Eclipse Award ...

(1980, 1987)

Winners

External link

Secretariat's 1973 Marlboro Cup

References

{{reflist Discontinued horse races Horse races in the United States Belmont Park Recurring sporting events established in 1973 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1987 1973 establishments in New York (state) 1987 disestablishments in New York (state)