Upset (foaled 1917 in New Jersey) is notable as the only horse to have ever defeated

Man o' War Man o' War (March 29, 1917 – November 1, 1947) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who is widely regarded as the greatest racehorse of all time. Several sports publications, including ''The Blood-Horse'', ''Sports Illustrated'', ESPN, and ...

. Man o' War, who would go on to a career in which he won 20 of his 21 starts, faced Upset in the seventh running of the Sanford Memorial Stakes at

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 actua ...

on August 13, 1919. Losing by a neck, Man o' War had been fractious at the starting line and got a bad start, leaving close to last. He also carried 15 pounds more than Upset.

Two-year-old season

Upset's victory in the Sanford Memorial was his only stakes win of his 1919 campaign. However, he did very well in other important events, running third in the Juvenile Stakes then had three runner-up finishes in the

United States Hotel Stakes The United States Hotel Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in the late summer or early autumn until 1955 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It was run on dirt over a distance of six furlongs. Raced in th ...

Grand Union Hotel Stakes The Grand Union Hotel Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. A sprint race, it was open to two-year-old horses and run on dirt over a distance of six furlongs. The Grand Union Ho ...

and the Champagne Stakes.

Three-year-old season

Trained by future

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

inductee,

James G. Rowe Sr. James Gordon Rowe Sr. (1857 – August 2, 1929) was an American jockey and horse trainer elected to the Hall of Fame for Thoroughbred Horse racing. He won the Belmont Stakes twice as a jockey and 8 times as a trainer. He had 34 champion hors ...

, Upset was owned by

Harry Payne Whitney Harry Payne Whitney (April 29, 1872 – October 26, 1930) was an American businessman, thoroughbred horse breeder, and member of the prominent Whitney family. Early years Whitney was born in New York City on April 29, 1872, as the eldest son ...

. As a three-year-old, the colt won the Havre de Grace Consolation Handicap for Whitney's assistant trainer Abner Clopton then for Rowe Sr. finished second by a head to Paul Jones in the mile and one-quarter

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 ...

. He then ran second to Man o' War in the

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 () on ...

, run at a mile and one-eighth. Competing in Kentucky with Clopton handling him, in mid-June Upset won the

Latonia Derby The Latonia Derby was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1883 through 1937 at Latonia Race Track in Latonia, Kentucky. Open to three-year-old horses, for its first 52 years the Latonia Derby was contested at a mile and a half t ...

over a distance of a mile and one-half.

At stud

Upset sired a number of winners, the most noteworthy of which were Misstep (1925), who won numerous mid-level stakes and had career earnings of $182,815, and Windy City (1926), winner of the

American Derby The American Derby is a Thoroughbred horse race in the United States run annually at Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The inaugural American Derby was held at Chicago's old Washington Park Race Track on the city's South Side and rac ...

in 1929.

Upset's naming

While it is widely believed that the term " upset", referring to a surprising loss, originated with this horse, that is not the case. The use of the word in horse racing dates to at least 1877, and the meaning "to overturn" or "overthrow" appears to be even older.

References

{{reflist 1917 racehorse births 1941 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in New Jersey Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 9-b