Bolt d'Oro (foaled March 17, 2015) is an 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. At age two, he won his first three starts, including 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 ...
and
FrontRunner Stakes, before finishing third in 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 ...
. He started his three-year-old campaign by winning the
San Felipe Stakes
The San Felipe Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade II event open to three-year-old horses. Normally held in early -March, it is raced at a distance of one and one ...
by disqualification and finishing second 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 ...
. One of the early favorites for the
2018 Kentucky Derby
The 2018 Kentucky Derby (officially, the 2018 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve) was the 144th running of the Kentucky Derby, and took place on Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Louisville, Kentucky. The field was open to 20 horses, with a ...
, he finished twelfth in that race.
Background
Bolt d'Oro was bred in Kentucky by
WinStar Farm
WinStar Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding and racing farm near Versailles, Kentucky, owned by Kenny Troutt. It won the 2010 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Owner and 2016 Outstanding Breeder. WinStar Farm owned 2018 Triple Crown wi ...
. He was sired by
Medaglia d'Oro, winner of the
Travers Stakes
The Travers Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is nicknamed the "Mid-Summer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds acco ...
and fourth in the
2002 Kentucky Derby
The 2002 Kentucky Derby was the 128th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 4, 2002, and 145,033 people were in attendance. The race was won by War Emblem who led from start to finish.
Race description
The field was considered ...
. As a sire, Medaglia d'Oro is best known as the sire of Hall of Fame inductee
Rachel Alexandra
Rachel () was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife. Her aunt ...
and multiple Eclipse Award winner
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds ( Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 50 ...
. Bolt d'Oro was the second foal out of Globe Trot, a daughter of
A.P. Indy. Her first foal, Sonic Mule, was also a stakes winner.
Bolt d'Oro was sold at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton yearling sale for $630,000 to Mick Ruis, who is also the colt's trainer. Ruis sent the colt to Ike Green at his Montana ranch for breaking and early training. The colt's name is a tribute to sprinter
Usain Bolt
Usain St. Leo Bolt, , (; born 21 August 1986) is a retired Jamaican sprinter, widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time. He is the world record holder in the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 4 × 100 metres relay.
An eight-ti ...
, who was competing at the
2016 Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
at the same time the colt was being prepared for his first ride. Green noted that the horse, like the sprinter, made everything look effortless and easy. "If you've been riding cheap horses all your life, and old claimers you're trying to patch up, you know the difference between one like him and those," said Green.
Racing career
2017: two-year-old season
Bolt d'Oro joined Mick Ruis's stable in the spring of 2017 and posted his first workout on May 11.
He caught the attention of handicappers with an excellent workout on July 22 of 59 seconds flat for 5 furlongs – the best time of 93 such workouts on the day. As a result, he was the odds-on favorite for his first start in a
maiden special weight race at
Del Mar on August 5. He broke poorly but quickly made his way through the field and dueled for the early lead. In the stretch, he responded to a challenge from Bank Walker to draw off for a -length win.
Ruis then decided to step Bolt d'Oro up in class for the Grade I
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 ...
on September 4. He again broke poorly, settling near the back of the field behind a fast early pace. The colt started to make up ground while racing wide around the turn, then dueled with Zatter down the stretch. He drew clear near the wire to win by three-quarters of a length with the favorite, Run Away, well back in third.
On September 30, Bolt d'Oro entered the
FrontRunner Stakes at
Santa Anita Park
Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...
as the odds-on favorite in a field of nine. He broke well and stalked the early pace set by Take the One O One. He took the lead turning into the stretch and continued to draw away, ultimately winning by lengths over Solomini.
Bolt d'Oro made his final start of the year in 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 ...
at Del Mar on November 4. Once again the odds-on favorite, he stumbled at the start and fell well behind the early leaders, then had to check his stride in heavy traffic. Around the final turn, he swung extremely wide to find racing room and started to make up ground rapidly. However, he could not close down the early advantage of
Good Magic
Good Magic (foaled March 1, 2015) is a retired Champion American Thoroughbred racehorse. He became the first horse to ever break his maiden in the Breeders' Cup when he won the 2017 Breeders' Cup Juvenile. As a three-year-old, he won the Blue Gra ...
, who won by lengths, and Solomini, who finished a length ahead of Bolt d'Oro in second.
In the
Eclipse Award
The Eclipse Award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th-century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse.
An Eclipse Award Trophy is presented to the winner in each division that is made by a few small selected America ...
voting for
American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse 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 ...
, Bolt d'Oro finished second to Good Magic by just 18 votes. The two horses were given an equal rating of 126 pounds in
The Jockey Club
The Jockey Club is the breed registry for Thoroughbred horses in the United States and Canada. It is dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing and fulfills that mandate by serving many segments of the industry through its s ...
's juvenile rankings, formerly known as the
Experimental Free Handicap
The Jockey Club is the breed registry for Thoroughbred horses in the United States and Canada. It is dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing and fulfills that mandate by serving many segments of the industry through its s ...
.
2018: three-year-old season
Bolt d'Oro's three-year-old debut was delayed by some body soreness in early January. Ruis bypassed the early prep races in February to give the colt more time to recover. Ruis also decided to change jockeys from
Corey Nakatani
Corey S. Nakatani (born October 21, 1970 in Covina, California, United States) is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He got his big break in 1990 when he rode Itsallgreektome to win big stakes races.
Nakatani has long resided on th ...
, who had ridden the colt in all of his two-year-old races, to
Javier Castellano
Javier Castellano (born October 23, 1977, in Maracaibo, Zulia State, Venezuela) is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.
Castellano began his riding career in 1996 at Santa Rita and La Rinconada racecourses in Venezuela. In June 1997 ...
.
On March 10, Bolt d'Oro entered the
San Felipe Stakes
The San Felipe Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade II event open to three-year-old horses. Normally held in early -March, it is raced at a distance of one and one ...
, in which he was the slight favorite over the undefeated
McKinzie. Lombo went to the early lead, followed closely by McKinzie with Bolt d'Oro a few lengths back in fourth. On the final turn, Bolt d'Oro made his move on the outside while Lombo dropped back. Rounding into the stretch, Bolt d'Oro bumped with McKinzie, then pulled into the lead. After nearly going into the rail, McKinzie rallied and the two horses battled down the stretch. In the final sixteenth of a mile, McKinzie started to bear out into Bolt d'Oro's path and the two horses bumped again. McKinzie crossed the line a head in front, but was disqualified to second. The stewards felt that the fault for the first contact near the head of the stretch was inconclusive: one camera angle showed that McKinzie may have caused the problem by bearing out, while the other angle showed that Bolt d'Oro may have been at fault for bearing in. However, McKinzie was clearly at fault in the second incident and the stewards felt the interference was enough to have cost Bolt d'Oro the race.
The win moved Bolt d'Oro to the top of the
NTRA three-year-old poll with 29 first place votes, followed closely by McKinzie. Veteran sportswriter
Steve Haskin called them "two exceptional colts who ran their hearts out, got a lot out of the race, and are for now clear-cut favorites for the Run for the Roses."
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 ...
, held on April 7, attracted a field of seven. Trainer Bob Baffert was originally planning to enter McKinzie for a rematch against Bolt d'Oro, but withdrew the colt due to a minor injury. Instead Baffert entered
Justify, who had run impressively in his first two starts but was facing stakes company for the first time. Justify went to the early lead and set easy fractions, opening up three lengths on Bolt d'Oro down the backstretch in what was essentially a match race. Bolt d'Oro was put to a drive as they rounded the final turn and closed to within a length and a half before Justify again drew away for a three-length win.
On May 5, Bolt d'Oro entered the
2018 Kentucky Derby
The 2018 Kentucky Derby (officially, the 2018 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve) was the 144th running of the Kentucky Derby, and took place on Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Louisville, Kentucky. The field was open to 20 horses, with a ...
as one of the favorites. He raced a few lengths behind a fast early pace set by Promises Fulfilled and Justified then tried to close ground while going wide around the far turn. Justify repelled the challenge and went on to win the race, while Bolt d'Oro faded to finish twelfth.
Rather than facing Justify again, Ruis opted to enter Bolt d'Oro in the prestigious Metropolitan Handicap (popularly known as the Met Mile) against older horses. Bolt d'Oro challenged Bee Jersey for the early lead but was unable to maintain the pace and tailed off to finish last.
Bolt d'Oro was subsequently transferred to the stable of Steve Asmussen, who gave the colt some time off after the spring campaign. Bolt d'Oro was expected to return to racing in the late fall but returned sore from an October workout and was subsequently retired. "He went to the top races, and we had to go against big barns that had 30-40 precocious horses," Ruis said. "He danced with all of them. He was an incredible horse."
Retirement
Bolt d'Oro was retired to stud at Spendthrift Farm, where he will stand the 2019 season for $25,000.
On February 27, 2019, his first mare was confirmed in foal. On March 5, Lotta Kim, dam of 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra, was covered by Bolt d'Oro.
Statistics
An asterisk after the odds means Bolt d'Oro was the post-time favorite.
Pedigree
Bolt d'Oro has no
inbreeding
Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders an ...
through the first five generations of his pedigree.
References
{{reflist
2015 racehorse births
Racehorses bred in Kentucky
Racehorses trained in the United States
Thoroughbred family 13-c