Grindstone (January 23, 1993 – March 22, 2022) 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 ...

racehorse, best known for winning the 1996 Kentucky Derby.

Background

Bred and owned by William T. Young's

Overbrook Farm William T. Young (February 15, 1918 – January 12, 2004) was an American businessman and major owner of thoroughbred racehorses. William T. Young attended the University of Kentucky where he was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. ...

, Grindstone was the son of

Unbridled Unbridled (March 5, 1987 – October 18, 2001) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1990 Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Classic. He retired with a career record of eight wins, six places, and six shows in 24 starts, ...

out of the mare Buzz My Bell. Buzz My Bell's dam was a half-sister to La Grue, the dam of the Belmont Stakes winner Pass Catcher. Upon the death of

Go for Gin Go for Gin (April 18, 1991 – March 8, 2022) was an American thoroughbred racehorse best known as the winner of the 1994 Kentucky Derby. He was sired by Cormorant out of the dam Never Knock. He was ridden in the Derby by Chris McCarron, who h ...

on March 8, 2022, Grindstone became the oldest living winner of the Kentucky Derby as well as any of the

Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, often shortened to Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for Thoroughbreds, often restricted to three-year-olds. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplis ...

races.

Racing career

As a three-year-old, Grindstone won the

Louisiana Derby The Louisiana Derby is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Run in late March, the race is open to horses, age three, willing to race miles on the dirt. It currently o ...

and was second in the

Arkansas Derby The Arkansas Derby is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. In 200 ...

. He then won the 1996 Kentucky Derby with a time of 2:01.06, edging Cavonnier at the wire by a nose. He was jockey

Jerry Bailey Jerry D. Bailey (born August 29, 1957 in Dallas, Texas) is an NBC Sports thoroughbred racing analyst and a retired American Hall of Fame jockey. Early years Bailey was born in Dallas but raised in El Paso. He had a pony as a child and became ...

's second Kentucky Derby winner, and the second in a row for trainer D. Wayne Lukas. Grindstone was retired five days after his Kentucky Derby victory, when a bone chip was discovered in his knee. He was the first horse since Bubbling Over in

1926 Events January * January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece. * January 8 **Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz. ** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of Viet ...

to be retired immediately following a win in the Kentucky Derby.

Race Record

Stud record

Grindstone stood a
Oakhurst Farm
in Oregon, making him the first Kentucky Derby winner to ever stand in the Northwest. His progeny include two millionaires, GR I winner

Birdstone Birdstone (foaled May 16, 2001, in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2004 Belmont Stakes and has become a successful sire. On August 28, 2020 Birdstone was pensioned from stud duty to Old Friends Retir ...

and Ekolu Place. He is also, via Birdstone, the grandsire of

Mine That Bird Mine That Bird (foaled May 10, 2006) is a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2009 Kentucky Derby at 50-1 odds and came second in the Preakness Stakes and third in the Belmont Stakes. He had earnings of $2,228,637 and was inducte ...

and Summer Bird, who both won Triple Crown races in 2009.

Pedigree

References

External links

1996 Kentucky Derby video
via

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

1993 racehorse births 2022 racehorse deaths Racehorses trained in the United States Racehorses bred in Kentucky Kentucky Derby winners Thoroughbred family 1-c {{racehorse-stub