Second Set (28 April 1988 – 22 February 2008) was an Irish-bred British-trained

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 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 ...

and

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 ...

. Unraced as a two-year-old he won two minor races in the spring of 1991 and then recorded his biggest success when winning the

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

Sussex Stakes The Sussex Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and ...

in July. He showed high-class form without winning as a four-year-old but his form deteriorated when he races without success in North America. He was retired from racing to become a breeding stallion and spent most of his stud career in Germany. He had limited success as a sire of winners and died in 2008 at the age of twenty.

Background

Second Set was a bay horse with a white

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

and two white

socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. In the late ...

bred in Ireland by J. P. and M. Mangan. He was sired by Alzao, a son of

Lyphard Lyphard (10 May 1969 – 10 June 2005) was an American-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and an important sire. Background American bred in Pennsylvania, Lyphard was a son of Northern Dancer out of the mare Goofed. He was auctioned ...

who never won above Group Three level, but became a successful breeding stallion, his progeny including Maraahel (

Hardwicke Stakes The Hardwicke Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards (2,406 metres), and ...

Shahtoush Shahtoush (foaled 29 April 1995) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare best known for winning The Oaks in 1998. In a racing career which lasted from August 1997 to September 1998 the filly ran eleven times and won three races. Sh ...

and Alborada. Second Set's dam Merriment was a descendant of The Oaks winner

Pennycomequick Pennycomequick is the site of a former Devonport prison that today forms part of the inner suburbs of the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. It is mostly known for its eccentric name, taken, locals believe, from The Penny pub situated by the ...

, making her a distant relative of the

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

Pensive Pensive (February 5, 1941 – May 20, 1949) was a bright chestnut Thoroughbred racehorse that in 1944 won the first two legs of the U.S. Triple Crown. Pensive also began only the second sire line "hat trick" in the Kentucky Derby, as his son P ...

. The colt was acquired by the American businessman Richard L. Duchossois and sent into training with

Luca Cumani Luca M. Cumani (born 7 April 1949, in Milan, Italy) is an Italian thoroughbred horse trainer and breeder. He trained at Bedford House Stables in Newmarket from 1976 to 2019. He has trained a multitude of high-profile horses, including seven Clas ...

at the Bedford House stable in

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 ridden in all of his European races 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 ...

Racing career

1991: three-year-old season

Second Set made a successful racecourse 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 In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the se ...

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...

on 4 May 1991, leading from the start and winning by three and a half

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 ...

from the

Dick Hern William Richard Hern (20 January 1921 – 22 May 2002) was an English Thoroughbred racehorse trainer and winner of sixteen British Classic Races between 1962 and 1995, and was Champion Trainer on four occasions. Following his early career ...

-trained Claret. Three weeks later he started 8/13 favourite for the Sydney Sandon Stakes at

Haydock Park Haydock Park Racecourse is a racecourse in Merseyside, North West England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, the racecourse is set in an area of parkland bounded by the towns of Haydock to the west, Ashton-in-Makerfield ...

. Dettori again sent the colt into the lead from start and won by two and a half lengths from Claret, with Arokat finishing last of the three runners. Second Set was moved up sharply in class to contest the

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 sched ...

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 ...

on 18 June and started the 4/1 third favourite behind

Marju Marju (Chinese: 馬足; 12 March 1988 – 11 October 2016) was a Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Background Marju was a dark bay or brown horse bred by Kilcarn Stud and owned by Hamdan Al Maktoum. He was sired by Last Tycoon out of Flame of ...

and the French-trained Acteur Francais. After being restrained by Dettori in the early stages he stayed on well in the straight and finished second, a head behind the winner Marju. On 31 July, Second Set was matched against older horses for the first time in the Sussex Stakes at

Goodwood Racecourse 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 lat ...

. The filly Shadayid was made favourite ahead of Mystiko, with Second Set next in the betting on 5/1. The other runners included Priolo, Star of Gdansk (third in The Derby), Green Line Express (runner-up in the race for the last two years) and

Sikeston Sikeston is a city located both in southern Scott County and northern New Madrid County, in the state of Missouri, United States. It is situated just north of the "Missouri Bootheel", although many locals consider Sikeston a part of it. By way ...

(a multiple Group One winner in Italy). After turning into the straight in fourth place, Second Set took the lead two furlongs from the finish and stayed on well to win by one and a half lengths and a short head from Shadayid and Priolo. In September, Second Set started 3/1 favourite for the

Queen Elizabeth II Stakes The Queen Elizabeth II Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is s ...

at Ascot, but finished fourth of the nine runners behind Selkirk,

Kooyonga Kooyonga was an Irish champion Thoroughbred racehorse who raced from 1990 to 1992. After showing good form as a juvenile, she had a highly successful three-year-old campaign, winning the Group One Irish 1,000 Guineas and the Coronation Stakes ...

and Shadayid. On his final appearance of the season, the colt was sent to

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

to contest the

Breeders' Cup Mile The Breeders' Cup Mile is a Grade 1 Weight for Age stakes race for thoroughbred racehorses three years old and up, run on a grass course. It has been conducted annually as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships since the event's incept ...

on 2 November, but made no impact, finishing twelfth of the fourteen runners behind

Opening Verse Opening Verse (1986–2002) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in England and the United States. Background Bred in Kentucky, his sire was the 1977 Epsom and Irish Derby winner, The Minstrel. Out of the mare Shy Dawn, his damsire was ...

1992: four-year-old season

Second Set raced five times as a four-year-old in 1992 without winning but ran well in several major races. On his first race of the season he was beaten a head by

Lahib Lahib (23 April 1988 – 15 June 2013) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and Horse breeding#Termimology, sire. He was unraced as a juvenile and won once from two starts as a three-year-old in the spring of 1991. In the ...

in the

Queen Anne Stakes The Queen Anne Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and is scheduled to take pl ...

at Royal Ascot when conceding six pounds to the winner and then finished third, beaten less than a length, behind Marling and Selkirk in the Sussex Stakes. He was then moved up in distance for the

Arlington Million The Arlington Million is a Grade 1 flat horse race in the United States for thoroughbred horses aged three years and upward on the turf. It was originally raced at the now-closed Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois over a distance of ...

on 6 September and finished unplaced behind the Frenc-trained five-year-old Dear Doctor. On his return to Europe in autumn he finished fifth behind Lahib in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes and third to Selkirk in the Challenge Stakes.

1993: five-year-old season

In 1993 Second Set was transferred to race in the United States where he was trained by David MacLean. He failed to recapture his European form and ran unplaced in all five of his starts. He ended his career by finishing fifth in an allowance race at Arlington in July.

Stud record

Second Set was retired from racing and returned to Europe to become a breeding stallion. He stood at the Castle Hyde Stud in Ireland for a season before moving to Germany in 1995 where he was based at Gestut Zoppenbroich. He was not a success at stud, with the best of his offspring being the German Group Three winners Areias ( Badener Sprint-Cup), Willingly (

Fürstenberg-Rennen The Fürstenberg-Rennen is a Group 3 flat horse race in Germany open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at a variety of German racecourses, over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled to take place each year in ...

). He developed severe

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

and was

euthanized Animal euthanasia ( euthanasia from el, εὐθανασία; "good death") is the act of killing an animal or allowing it to die by withholding extreme medical measures. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditi ...

on 22 February 2008.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1988 racehorse births 2008 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 1-p