Lookin At Lucky (foaled May 27, 2007 in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

) is a champion American

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 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 ...

who won the

2010 Preakness Stakes The 2010 Preakness Stakes was the 135th running of the Preakness Stakes thoroughbred horse race. The race took place on May 15, 2010, and was televised in the United States on the NBC television network. Lookin At Lucky, who was jockeyed by Marti ...

. He was the 2009 Champion Two-Year-Old and 2010 Champion Three-Year-Old, becoming the first horse in 32 years to win these awards.

Background

Sired by

Smart Strike Smart Strike (foaled May 21, 1992 in Ontario – died March 25, 2015) was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse. The son of the Champion sire, Mr. Prospector, and out of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame mare Classy 'n Smart, Smart Strike is a ...

, a half brother to Canadian Triple Crown Winner

Dance Smartly Dance Smartly (1988–2007) was a Champion Thoroughbred racemare who went undefeated in 1991 while winning the Canadian Triple Crown and becoming the first horse bred in Canada to ever win a Breeders' Cup race. She was inducted into both the Can ...

, his dam, Private Feeling, was sired by Belong To Me by the North American Leading Sire of 1993, Danzig.''The Blood-Horse'', May 17, 2010
/ref> Bred by Gulf Coast Farms, Lookin At Lucky was bought back as a yearling for $35,000 at the 2008 Keeneland September Sale. After working 1/8 of a mile in 10 seconds, Lookin at Lucky was bought by popular trainer

Bob Baffert Robert A. Baffert (born January 13, 1953) is an American racehorse trainer who trained the 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify. Baffert's horses have won a record six Kentucky Derbies, seven Preakn ...

at the 2009 Keeneland April Sale for $475,000. Lookin At Lucky raced for owners Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman.

2009: Two-Year-Old Season

Lookin At Lucky broke his maiden at the

Cushion Track The track surface of a horse racing track refers to the material of which the track is made. There are three types of track surfaces used in modern horse racing. These are: * Turf, the most common track surface in Europe *Dirt, the most common trac ...

Hollywood Park Hollywood Park may refer to: Places United States * Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California * Hollywood Park, Chicago, a neighborhood in North Park, Chicago, Illinois * Hollywood Park, Inglewood, an entertainment complex and m ...

on July 11, going 6 furlongs. He followed up this win in the Grade 2

Best Pal Stakes The Best Pal Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds over a distance of six furlongs on the dirt track scheduled annually in August at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The event currently carries a purse ...

Del Mar Racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is a event venue in Del Mar, California. The annual San Diego County Fair is held here, which was called the Del Mar Fair from 1984 to 2001. In 1936, the Del Mar Racetrack was built by the Thoroughbred Club with foundi ...

. Ridden by

Garrett Gomez Garrett Keith Gomez (January 1, 1972 – December 14, 2016) was an American Thoroughbred jockey who won two Eclipse Awards and thirteen Breeders' Cup races during his career. Racing career Early career Gomez learned to ride by watching his fathe ...

, he finished the six and a half furlongs in a time of 1:16.06. His next start was the

Del Mar Futurity The Del Mar Futurity is a seven-furlong American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A Grade I event since 2007, the race is open to two-year-old horses and offers a purse of $300,000. In 1971, it w ...

which he won in final time of 1:22.85. Lookin At Lucky solidified his entrance into the

Breeders' Cup Juvenile The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup W ...

by winning the

Grade One Grade 1 may refer to: *First grade, the first school year of primary education. *A Grade 1 Graded stakes race horse race * ''Grade One'' (TV series), a 2014 Chinese TV variety show *Grade 1 listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed b ...

Norfolk Stakes with final time of 1:43.11 in a full field of 12. Going off as the favorite from post 13, Lookin At Lucky had a difficult trip and finished second by a head behind the long shot

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an winner,

Vale of York The Vale of York is an area of flat land in the northeast of England. The vale is a major agricultural area and serves as the main north–south transport corridor for Northern England. The Vale of York is often supposed to stretch from the R ...

in the

. On December 19, Lookin At Lucky sealed

American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when the '' Daily Racing F ...

honors with a win over chief rival Noble's Promise in the

CashCall Futurity The Los Alamitos Futurity is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds run over a distance distance of one and one sixteenth miles ( furlongs) on the dirt held annually in early December at Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, C ...

2010: Three-Year-Old Season

On March 13, Lookin At Lucky made his three-year-old debut at

Oaklawn Park Oaklawn Plantation may refer to: * Oaklawn (Huntsville, Alabama), listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) * Oaklawn Plantation (Leon County, Florida) *Oaklawn Plantation (Natchez, Louisiana) The Oaklawn Plantation is a historic ...

with a win in the

Rebel Stakes The Rebel Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses at a distance of one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt run annually in March, at Oaklawn Park Race Track in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The event currently off ...

. He won by a head over arch-rival Noble's Promise, even though he stumbled badly during the run down the backstretch. On April 3, he had a horrendous trip under Garrett Gomez in the

Santa Anita Derby The Santa Anita Derby is an American Grade 1 thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run each April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is currently run at a distance of miles on the dirt and carries a purse of $400,000. It is one ...

. Bumped, jostled, and virtually ridden into the fence, Lookin At Lucky finished third. Going into the 2010 Kentucky Derby, Lookin At Lucky was made the favorite after the scratch of

Eskendereya Eskendereya (foaled, 2007 in Kentucky) is a retired American Thoroughbred racehorse and current sire. Background Eskendereya was sired by Giant's Causeway, a son of North America's one time leading sire Storm Cat. Bred in Kentucky by Sanford R ...

. Drawing the number one inside post, he was pinned to the rail and had nowhere to go until a late run to wind up sixth, making it his first off-the-board finish. After a disappointing

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-yea ...

finish, trainer

turned to young jockey Martin Garcia and fired

after three consecutive races where the veteran jockey could not keep the horse out of trouble. On May 15, Garcia rode Lookin At Lucky to a win in the 135th running of 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 Graded stakes race, Grade I race run over a distance of ...

Pimlico Race Course Pimlico Race Course is a thoroughbred horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of Ol ...

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore wa ...

. Lookin At Lucky went off as the 2–1 second choice and paid $6.80 to win in a time of 1:55.47, holding off pacesetter First Dude and the late-charging Jackson Bend. Martin Garcia rode Lookin At Lucky again in the Haskell Invitational. The 6-5 favorite, he broke a bit awkwardly, but Garcia steadied him and positioned him three wide on the first turn. Entering the far turn while still 3 paths wide, he moved past his competitors, winning the race by four lengths over upcoming Trappe Shot, followed by

First Dude First Dude may refer to: * First Dude (horse), an American Thoroughbred racehorse * First Gentleman First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarch ...

and Super Saver, the

winner. He received a career-best 105

Beyer Speed Figure The Beyer Speed Figure is a system for rating the performance of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America designed in the early 1970s by Andrew Beyer, the syndicated horse racing columnist for The Washington Post. First published in book form in 1 ...

for the most dominant performance of his career. Lookin at Lucky developed an illness after the Haskell and missed a month of training. Regrouping, Baffert pointed his star toward the

Indiana Derby The Indiana Derby is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run over a distance of miles on the dirt held annually in July at Horseshoe Indianapolis in Shelbyville, Indiana. It is the racetrack's signature event offering ...

, held at small

Hoosier Park Harrah's Hoosier Park Racing & Casino is a racino including a standardbred racetrack located in Anderson, Indiana, approximately 30 miles northeast of Indianapolis. It is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment. The facility features live harne ...

. Lookin At Lucky drew post position 6 in a field of nine horses and became the overwhelming favorite at odds of 2–5. He broke well but fell back to last early in the race and around the first turn. Still in eighth place on the backstretch, Lookin At Lucky came five-wide around the far turn, caught the leader in late home-stretch and won by 1 lengths. He earned a 103

for his performance. After his win in the Indiana Derby, Baffert pointed the horse toward the 27th running of the Breeders' Cup Classic. Lookin At Lucky trained well but was compromised by a "minor infection and a cough" a week before the race. "I had to treat him with antibiotics, and sometimes that's hard on a horses system," Baffert said. Lookin At Lucky was healthy for the race, but was placed farther back than usual early and finished fourth.

Stud career

In November 2010, Lookin At Lucky was purchased by

Coolmore Stud Coolmore Stud, in Fethard, County Tipperary, Ireland, is headquarters of the world's largest breeding operation of thoroughbred racehorses. Through its racing arm, Ballydoyle, Coolmore also has raced many classic winners and champions. The operat ...

and retired. He then entered stud at Coolmore's Ashford Stud near

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles () is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 9,316 according to 2017 cen ...

. His initial stud fee was set at $35,000. Lookin At Lucky's first foal was born in January 2012 at Royal Pegasus Farm in Lexington, Kentucky. The foal, a dark bay filly, was out of the

Storm Cat Storm Cat (February 27, 1983 – April 24, 2013) was an American Thoroughbred stallion whose breeding fee during the peak of his stud career was $500,000, the highest in North America at the time. He was the leading sire in North America in 1999 ...

mare Awesome. Lookin At Lucky was represented by his first winner in May 2014 when filly Lucky'stormwarning won a maiden race at

Gulfstream Park Gulfstream Park, owned by The Stronach Group, is a Thoroughbred race track, casino and outdoor entertainment and shopping destination in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Thoroughbred horse racing occurs year-round, defined by three distinct race meets ...

. His first stakes winner came in August 2014 when colt Four Leaf Chief won the Louisiana Cup Juvenile Stakes at

Louisiana Downs Louisiana Downs Casino & Racetrack is a horse racing track and racino located in Bossier City in northwestern Louisiana. It opened in 1974. The casino features over 800 slot machines. The track specification is a dirt track of & turf course of . ...

. He currently serves as a "shuttle stallion", traveling to Coolmore's Australian operations during the Southern Hemisphere breeding season. In 2012, Lookin At Lucky began shuttling to

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

to stand at Haras Paso Nevado, a farm near

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

. He shuttled to Chile alongside fellow Ashford stallion

Scat Daddy Scat Daddy (May 11, 2004 – December 14, 2015) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won four stakes races including the Champagne Stakes and Florida Derby. Retired after being injured in the Kentucky Derby, he went on to become a prominen ...

Notable Progeny

Lookin At Lucky's most notable progeny includes:

United States (Northern Hemisphere)

Accelerate In mechanics, acceleration is the rate of change of the velocity of an object with respect to time. Accelerations are vector quantities (in that they have magnitude and direction). The orientation of an object's acceleration is given by t ...

: 2018 Horse of the Year finalist and champion older dirt male (

Santa Anita Handicap The Santa Anita Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade I race for horses four years old and up and was once considered the most important race for o ...

, Gold Cup at Santa Anita,

Pacific Classic The Pacific Classic Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds and older over a distance of one and one quarter miles on the dirt track scheduled annually in August at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The ev ...

Awesome Again Stakes The Awesome Again Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for horses aged three years old or older over the distance of one and one-eighth miles on the dirt scheduled annually in September at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. ...

Breeders' Cup Classic The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade I Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race for 3-year-olds and older run at a distance of on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships in late October ...

) *

Country House An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peop ...

: Winner of the

2019 Kentucky Derby The 2019 Kentucky Derby (officially, the 2019 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve) was the 145th running of the Kentucky Derby, and took place on Saturday, May 4, 2019, in Louisville, Kentucky. The field was open to 20 horses, who q ...

* Madefromlucky: Winner of the Peter Pan Stakes,

West Virginia Derby The West Virginia Derby is an American Grade III stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred race horses run over a distance of miles on the dirt at Mountaineer Race Track in Chester, West Virginia in August. The purse for the event is US$500,0 ...

Greenwood Cup Stakes The Greenwood Cup Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds and older, over a distance of one-and-one-half miles on the dirt held annually in September during the fall meeting at Parx Casino and Racing in Bensalem ...

, and Stakes. * Dr. Dorr: Winner of the

Californian Stakes The Californian Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in late April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California (relocated from the now closed Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California). The Grade II event is open to ...

and Gr.I-placed. * Breaking Lucky: Winner of the

Seagram Cup Stakes The Chinese Cultural Centre Seagram Cup Stakes is a Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the last week of July/first week of August at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. A Grade III event, it is open to horses Three years old ...

and

Prince of Wales Stakes The Prince of Wales Stakes is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Fort Erie Race Track in Fort Erie, Ontario. Restricted to only three-year-old horses bred in Canada, it is contested on dirt over a distance of miles (1.9 km ...

, multiple Gr.I placed. * Lucky Player: Winner of the Iroquois Stakes. * Lookin At Lee: Won Ellis Park Juvenile Stakes, runner-up in

2017 Kentucky Derby The 2017 Kentucky Derby (in full, the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands, due to sponsorship) was the 143rd running of the Kentucky Derby, and took place on Saturday, May 6, 2017. The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held each year in Loui ...

. * Money Multiplier:Winner of the Monmouth Stakes, multiple Gr.I-placed. * Diamond Oops: Winner of the Smile Sprint Stakes, multiple Gr.I-placed. * Four Leaf Chief: Multiple stakes winner * Good Luck Gus: Multiple stakes winner * Protective Shield: Multiple stakes winner Lookin At Lucky has also sired stakes winners and graded stakes placed runners Spider's Alibi, Linda's Luck, La Piba, One Lucky Dane, Maybellene, Giuseppe the Great, Dolphus, and Summer Luck.

Chile (Southern Hemisphere)

* Wow Cat (CHI): Winner of the Gran Criterium, Cl Tanteo de Potranca, Mil Guineas (all CHI-G1), and Cl Jose Saavedra Baeza (CHI-G3). Also won the Gr. 1

Beldame Stakes The Beldame Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares three-years-old and up. Inaugurated in 1939, it was run as a handicap prior to 1960. The race is held annually near the beginning of October at Belmont Park and curr ...

in the US. * Kurilov (CHI): Winner of the GP Hipodromo Chile (CHI-G1) * Conquer (CHI): Winner of the Cl Alberto Vial Infante (CHI-G1) * Full of Luck (CHI): Winner of the El Derby (CHI-G1) and Cl Criadores Machos, GP Coronacion, Cl Otono (CHI-G2) * Artigal (CHI): Winner of the Hugo Bourchier (CHI-G1) and Gran Handicap de Chile (CHI-G3) * Tinku (CHI): Winner of the Cl Juan S. Jackson (CHI-G2) * Luckita (CHI): Winner of the Cl Haras de Chile (CHI-G2) * Lucky Sisi (CHI): Winner of the GP Criadores (CHI-G2) * Jacare (CHI): Winner of the Cl Alvaro Covarrubias (CHI-G3)

Pedigree

References

Lookin At Lucky's pedigree and racing stats

Lookin At Lucky at Coolmore Stud
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lookin At Lucky 2007 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Eclipse Award winners Thoroughbred family 9-f