Pinatubo (foaled 11 March 2017) is an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was the top-rated European two-year-old of 2019, when he was unbeaten in six races including the

Woodcote Stakes The Woodcote Stakes is a conditions flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old Thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 6 furlongs and 3 yards (1,210 metres) at Epsom Downs ...

Chesham Stakes The Chesham Stakes is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take place ...

Vintage Stakes The Vintage Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take place ea ...

National Stakes The Vincent O'Brien National Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres ...

and

Dewhurst Stakes The Dewhurst Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), ...

. In the following year he won the

Prix Jean Prat The Prix Jean Prat is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it is sched ...

and was placed in the

2000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year at ...

St James's Palace Stakes The St James's Palace Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old colts. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 7 furlongs and 213 yards (1,603 metres). It is schedu ...

and

Prix du Moulin The Prix du Moulin de Longchamp is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is sch ...

Background

Pinatubo is a bay colt bred in Ireland by Godolphin in whose blue colours he raced. The colt was sent into training with Charlie Appleby at Godolphin's European base at

Newmarket, Suffolk Newmarket is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. Located (14 miles) west of Bury St Edmunds and (14 miles) northeast of Cambridge. It is considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred hor ...

. He was from the eleventh crop of foals sired by

Shamardal Shamardal (27 March 2002 – 16 April 2020) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in the United Kingdom and in France and was voted the 2004 European Champion Two-Year-Old. Background Bred at Watercress Farm in Paris, Kentucky, Shamardal w ...

, whose wins included the

Poule d'Essai des Poulains Molof (Ampas, Poule, Powle-Ma) is a poorly documented Papuan language spoken by about 200 people in Molof village, Senggi District, Keerom Regency. Classification Wurm (1975) placed it as an independent branch of Trans–New Guinea, but Ross ...

Prix du Jockey Club The Prix du Jockey Club, sometimes referred to as the French Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a ...

and St. James's Palace Stakes. Pinatubo's dam Lava Flow won two races, including the

Listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

Prix de la Seine at

Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (french: Hippodrome de Longchamp) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for its variety of interlaced tr ...

in 2013.

Racing career

2019: two-year-old season

Pinatubo began his career in an evening novice race at

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...

on 10 May 2019, beating another Godolphin horse, Platinum Star by 3 1/4 lengths. This was followed by a win in the

on Oaks day at

Epsom Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...

. On 22 Jun 2019, Pinatubo was the 3/1 second favourite for the

Royal Ascot Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and ...

but beat the favourite, the

Aidan O'Brien Aidan Patrick O'Brien (born 16 October 1969 in County Wexford, Ireland) Aidan O'Brien bio NTRA. ...

trained Lope y Fernandez (

Round Tower Stakes The Round Tower Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Ireland open to two-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to take ...

) by 3 1/4 lengths, breaking the course record in the process. The horse then took a step up to win his first Group race, the Group 2

at the

Glorious Goodwood Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House. It hosts the annual Glorious Goodwood meeting in late ...

meeting by 5 lengths on 30 July. For his first Group 1 race, the

Vincent O'Brien National Stakes The Vincent O'Brien National Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres ...

The Curragh The Curragh ( ; ga, An Currach ) is a flat open plain of almost of common land in County Kildare. This area is well known for Irish horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is located on the edge of Kildare town, beside the f ...

, he was ridden for the first time by

William Buick William Buick (born 22 July 1988) is a Norwegian-British flat jockey. He shared the champion apprentice jockey title in 2008 with David Probert and won the Lester Award for Apprentice Jockey of the Year in 2007 and 2008. From 2010 to 2014 he w ...

. Pinatubo was made 1/3 favourite and won by 9 lengths from Armory ( Futurity Stakes), with the Racing Post referring to him as a "Ferrari of a racehorse" and trainer Appleby stating: "He's the best two-year-old I've ever trained". Comparisons were drawn with two-year-old performances from horses like

Frankel Frankel is the surname of: * Benjamin Frankel (1906–1973), British composer * Bethenny Frankel (born 1970), American chef and reality television personality * Charles Frankel (1917–1975), American philosopher, known for Charles Frankel Prize * ...

and Arazi. Following this victory, form analysts

Timeform Timeform is a sports data and content provider located in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1948, it provides systematic information on form to punters and others involved in the horse racing industry. The company was purchased by ...

rated him the second-best two-year-old of the modern era behind

Celtic Swing Celtic Swing (21 February 1992 – 4 September 2010) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. He won the French Derby in 1995 and was also known for his performances in the autumn of the previous year, when his wins at Ascot and at Doncaster ...

On 12 October, Pinatubo ended his season in the

at Newmarket and started the 1/3 favourite. His eight opponents included Wichita (winner of the

Somerville Tattersall Stakes The Somerville Tattersall Stakes, currently run as the Tattersalls Stakes, is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and geldings. It is run on the Rowley Mile at N ...

), Positive (

Solario Stakes The Solario Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take plac ...

), Arizona (

Coventry Stakes The Coventry Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each ...

) and Mystery Power (

Superlative Stakes The Superlative Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is sc ...

). After racing in mid-division he overtook the front-running Arizona in the final furlong to win by two lengths. In the official ratings for the 2019 season, Pinatubo was rated 128, the highest two-year-old rating awarded since

was rated 130 in 1994.

2020: three-year-old season

The flat racing season in England was disrupted by the

COVID-19 Pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

and the 2000 Guineas was run a month later than usual on 6 June over the Rowley mile at Newmarket. Pinatubo started the 5/6 favourite against fourteen opponents but finished third behind

Kameko Kameko (foaled 7 April 2017) is an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. As a two-year-old in 2019 he won his first race and then ran second in both the Solario Stakes and the Royal Lodge Stakes before winning the Vertem Futurit ...

and Wichita. Two weeks later the colt started favourite for the

at Royal Ascot. He took the lead approaching the final furlong but was overtaken and beaten a length into second place by

Palace Pier The Brighton Palace Pier, commonly known as Brighton Pier or the Palace Pier, is a Grade II* listed pleasure pier in Brighton, England, located in the city centre opposite the Old Steine. Established in 1899, it was the third pier to be constr ...

. On 12 July Pinatubo was sent to France and started the 3/5 favourite for the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat, run over 1400 metres at

Deauville Racecourse Hippodrome Deauville-La Touques is a race track for thoroughbred horse racing located in Deauville in the Calvados département, in the Normandy ''région'' of France. Originally called Hippodrome de la Touques, it was named for the Touques River t ...

. His ten opponents included Alson, Tropbeau (

Prix du Calvados The Prix du Calvados is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it is scheduled to ta ...

), Molatham (

Jersey Stakes The Jersey Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each ...

), Arizona,

Wooded A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

and Kenway (

Prix La Rochette The Prix La Rochette is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place ...

). Ridden by Buick, he took the lead 200 metres from the finish and kept on well under pressure to win by three-quarters of a length from the 40/1 outsider Lope Y Fernandez. Buick commented: "He felt really good today. He showed his brilliance, he showed how fast he is, and I think coming back to seven furlongs was a little bit easier for him... At Ascot, he did absolutely nothing wrong and he was just outstayed by a horse who was on the improve and was stronger at that trip on that day. But I think he showed his resilience and constitution to come out of that race and do what he did here". Pinatubo returned to France for the

over 1600 metres at

on 12 September, in which he was matched against older horses for the first time. Ridden by Doyle, he went off the 1.4/1 favourite and finished strongly to take second place behind the four-year-old

Persian King This is a list of monarchs of Persia (or monarchs of the Iranian peoples, Iranic peoples, in present-day Iran), which are known by the royal title Shah or King of Kings#Iran, Shahanshah. This list starts from the establishment of the Medes aroun ...

. On 9 October, it was announced that Pinatubo had been retired from racing and would begin his career as a breeding stallion at the

Dalham Hall Stud Darley Stud is located at Dalham Hall, the global breeding operation owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the Ruler of Dubai and vice-president of the United Arab Emirates. It is on the outskirts of Newmarket, Suffolk, the internati ...

. In the

2020 World's Best Racehorse Rankings The 2020 World's Best Racehorse Rankings, sponsored by Longines was the 2020 edition of the World's Best Racehorse Rankings. It was an assessment of Thoroughbred racehorses issued by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities The Long ...

, Pinatubo was rated on 122, making him the equal twenty-first best racehorse in the world.

Stud career

As well as standing at

, Pinatubo shuttled to Australia with Godolphins' new stallions Bivouac,

Ghaiyyath Ghaiyyath (foaled 19 April 2015) is an Irish-bred British-trained champion Thoroughbred racehorse who was the 2020 European Horse of the Year after winning the Juddmonte International Stakes, Eclipse Stakes, Coronation Cup, and Dubai Millenn ...

and Earthlight for the 2021 breeding season.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/2659940/pinatubo/form , title=Pinatubo (Ire) , publisher=Racing Post , accessdate=16 September 2019 {{cite web , url=https://www.racingpost.com/news/big-race-reports/wow-pinatubo-in-a-different-league-as-he-destroys-rivals-in-the-national-stakes/399893 , title=Wow! Pinatubo in a different league as he destroys rivals in the National Stakes , date=15 September 2019 , work=

Racing Post ''Racing Post'' is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing and sports betting publisher which is published in print and digital formats. It is printed in tabloid format from Monday to Sunday. , it has an average daily circulation of 6 ...

, accessdate=16 September 2019 {{cite web , url=https://www.timeform.com/horse-racing/news/pinatubo-awarded-135p-rating-following-national-stakes-romp-1692019 , title=Pinatubo second highest-rated 2-y-o of modern era following National Stakes , publisher=Timeform , date=16 September 2019 , accessdate=16 September 2019

External links

Career 1-2-3 Colour Chart
– ''Pinatubo'' 2017 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 7-a Cartier Award winners