Rule of Law (foaled 6 March 2001), is a retired

World Champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

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 ...

racehorse and active

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

who was bred in the United States but trained in Britain. In a career which lasted from June 2003 until September 2004, he ran nine times and won four races. He recorded his most important victory when winning the

Classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

St. Leger Stakes The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a ...

on his final racecourse appearance. He had previously finished second in the

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Background

Rule of Law, described by

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 ...

as a "leggy, attractive" bay horse, was bred in the United States by

Robert Sangster Robert Edmund Sangster (23 May 1936 – 7 April 2004)

. He is one of many notable thoroughbred racehorses sired by

Kingmambo Kingmambo (February 19, 1990 – January 20, 2016) was an American-bred, French-trained thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Background He was sired by the leading stallion, Mr. Prospector, who in turn was a son of Raise a Native, out of the 1999 ...

, a son of Mr. Prospector. His dam, Crystal Crossing, as a descendant of the successful racehorse and broodmare Violetta, was closely related to the Derby winner

Teenoso Teenoso (7 April 1980 – 4 October 1999) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. After showing moderate form as a two-year-old, he improved in the spring of 1983 to win the Group Three Lingfield Derby Trial and the Epsom ...

. Before the start of his racing career, Rule of Law was acquired by

Sheikh Mohammed Sheikh Muhammad (1560–1650) was a Muslim saint-poet who is venerated by Hindus. Sheikh Muhammad or alternatively Sheikh Muhammed, Sheikh Mohammad, Sheikh Mohammed may also refer to (in chronological birth order): * Sheikh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wah ...

who sent him into training with

David Loder David Loder (born in Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire, England) is a trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses. He began his professional career in Newmarket in 1992 and trained for thirteen years including for Godolphin Racing, where he trained Dub ...

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 ...

. For the 2004 season, the colt was transferred to the

Godolphin Racing Godolphin (Arabic: جودلفين) is the Maktoum family's private Thoroughbred horseracing stable and was named in honour of the Godolphin Arabian, who came from the desert to become one of the three founding stallions of the modern Thoroug ...

organisation and was trained by

Saeed bin Suroor Saeed bin Suroor (born 16 November 1968 in Dubai) is a horse racing trainer in Great Britain. He took out his training licence in 1993 and the following year was appointed as the trainer for Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin operation. He has been ...

Racing career

2003: two-year-old season

Rule of Law ran four times as a two-year-old, ridden on each occasion by

Jamie Spencer Jamie Spencer (born 8 June 1980, in County Tipperary) is an Irish flat racing jockey currently riding in the UK. He has been champion jockey in both Ireland and Britain and has won seven classics, five in Ireland and two in England.

. He made his debut in a seven

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

maiden race at

Sandown Park Racecourse Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse racing ...

in June, in which he finished third to Grand Rich King. A month later Rule of Law appeared in a similar event at

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot Racecourse, Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It att ...

and led from the start before drawing clear in the closing stages and winning by seven

lengths Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Intern ...

. Rule of Law returned to York in August and was moved up in class to contest the

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

. Starting the 15/8 favourite, he led from the early stages and held the late challenge of the

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

-trained Celtic Cat to win by a neck. On his final start of the season, Rule of Law was again promoted in class for the Group Two

Royal Lodge Stakes The Royal Lodge Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts and geldings. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), an ...

at Ascot in September. Spencer again attempted to make all the running, but Rule of Law was caught in the final furlong and finished third, beaten a short head and three quarters of a length by Snow Ridge and Moscow Ballet.

2004: three-year-old season

Rule of Law began his three-year-old season in the Group Two

Dante Stakes The Dante Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 56 yards () at Y ...

at York, an important trial race for the Epsom Derby. Starting at odds of 8/1 and ridden by

Frankie Dettori Lanfranco Dettori (; born 15 December 1970), better known as Frankie Dettori, is an Italian horse racing jockey based in the United Kingdom. Dettori has been British flat racing Champion Jockey three times and has ...

he kept on well in the closing stages to finish second to

North Light North Light (foaled March 1, 2001) is a retired Thoroughbred racehorse, and active sire, bred in Ireland but trained in the United Kingdom. He is best known as the winner of The Derby in 2004. He currently stands at the Adena Springs Stud ...

, beaten half a length, with Let The Lion Roar two and a half lengths back in third. In the Epsom Derby on 5 June, Rule of Law started a 20/1 outsider, and was ridden by

Kerrin McEvoy Kerrin McEvoy (born 28 October 1980) is an Australian jockey who is best known for winning three Melbourne Cups. In Europe, McEvoy rode several big winners for Godolphin including Rule of Law in the St Leger Stakes at Doncaster in 2004 and Ibn ...

as Dettori had opted to ride Godolphin's other runner, Snow Ridge. McEvoy restrained Rule of Law at the back of the field before moving him to the outside to make his challenge in the straight. The finish proved to be a repeat of the Dante, with North Light winning by a length and a half from Rule of Law and Let the Lion Roar. In the

Irish Derby The Irish Derby (Irish: Dearbaí na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 ...

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 ...

three weeks later, Rule of Law took the lead in the straight but was outpaced in the closing stages and finished fourth behind

Grey Swallow Grey Swallow (19 February 2001 – 25 August 2021) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a racing career which lasted from July 2003 until October 2006 he competed in five countries and won six of his fifteen races. He was unbeaten in ...

and Tycoon. In August, Rule of Law was sent to York for the Great Voltigeur Stakes, a major trial race for the St Leger. Ridden by Dettori, he "dominated" the race from the start and quickened clear in the straight to win by two and a half lengths from Let the Lion Roar. In the St Leger at

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

on 11 September, Rule of Law started 3/1 joint favourite alongside the

Michael Stoute Sir Michael Ronald Stoute (born 22 October 1945) is a Barbadian British Thoroughbred horse trainer in flat racing. Career Stoute, whose father was the Chief of Police for Barbados, left the island in 1964 at the age of 19 to become an assis ...

-trained filly

Quiff The quiff is a hairstyle that combines the 1950s pompadour hairstyle, the 1950s flattop, and sometimes a mohawk. It was born as a post-war reaction to the short and strict haircuts for men. The hairstyle was a staple in the British 'Teddy Boy' m ...

, the winner of the

Yorkshire Oaks The Yorkshire Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 3 fu ...

. He was the Godolphin team's sole representative and had been strongly fancied after working impressively in training. McEvoy sent Rule of Law into the lead from the start and set a moderate pace before sending him into a clear lead in the straight. In the closing stages he was strongly challenged by Quiff, but ran on "gamely" to win by a head in what the

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described as a "thrilling finish". Rule of Law was sent to

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

for the winter of 2004/5, where he sustained a foot injury. He stayed in training for a further two seasons, but never ran again, owing to his inability to recover fully from his injury problems.

Assessment and honours

Rule of Law was rated the best racehorse in the world over extended distances in 2004 when he was given a rating of 120 in the

World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings The Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings (LWBRR), known as World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings (WTRR) before 2012, are horseracing's equivalent to World Rankings by other major sporting organizations such as ATP Tennis Rankings, World Golf R ...

Stud career

Rule of Law was retired to stand at his owner's

Darley 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 ...

. He has been based in Japan before moving in 2011 to the Kedorah House Stud in

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...

, Ireland. To date, he has had little success as a sire of winners.

Pedigree

*Rule of Law is inbred 4 × 4 to Northern Dancer, meaning that this stallion appears twice in the fourth generation of his pedigree.

References

{{St Leger Winners 2001 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 3-c St Leger winners