Every Triple Crown Winner in History: Legendary Horses and Their Stories

Key Takeaways:

• The Triple Crown is one of the hardest achievements in sports, as a horse must win three very challenging races within a five-week time frame at age three.
• Only 13 horses have accomplished the Triple Crown, winning the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.
• Secretariat (1973) was the most impressive Triple Crown winner, winning and setting records in all three races that still stand today.
• Justify (2018) is only the second undefeated Triple Crown winner, and the only Triple Crown winner to win without racing at age two.

The Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes form the American Triple Crown of Thoroughbred racing. Patterned after the English series of the Two Thousand Guineas, Epsom Derby, and St. Leger, the Triple Crown is one of the hardest achievements in sports.

The Triple Crown requires winning three long, taxing races in a relatively short period of time: just five weeks. Furthermore, a horse only gets one chance to win. After all, each of the Triple Crown events is only open to three-year-old horses, meaning any horse gets one chance, and one chance only, to make it into the races and try to win all three. It takes a precious mix of speed, stamina, soundness, and mental maturity to achieve the feat.

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The 13 Triple Crown Winners

In a century and a half of Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes history, only thirteen horses have been able to sweep the entire series. These are the Triple Crown champions who have etched their names into history.

Sir Barton (1919)

• Trainer: H. Guy Bedwell
• Jockey: Johnny Loftus
• Owner: J. K. L. Ross

There was no more unlikely Triple Crown winner than Sir Barton. For one, the term “Triple Crown” didn’t apply to the series we know today; that didn’t lock in until the 1930s, even though the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont were all decades old by 1919. But also, Sir Barton showed up to Churchill Downs without a win to his name.

Sir Barton made his three-year-old debut in the Kentucky Derby, ridden by Johnny Loftus after Earl Sande decided to ride stablemate Billy Kelly instead. Loftus got Sir Barton to the lead that day, and though Billy Kelly chased for second, Sir Barton led at every call and won by five lengths. He went gate-to-wire in the Preakness, too—just four days later at Pimlico Race Course!

Ten days later, Sir Barton showed he could rate from off the pace when winning the Withers at Belmont. He got a bit of a break after that, as the Belmont Stakes was two and a half weeks after the Withers. Sir Barton did the same thing he did in the Withers, rated early before taking over to score by five lengths in the Belmont Stakes, becoming the first winner of what would become known over a decade later as the Triple Crown.

Gallant Fox (1930)

• Trainer: Jim Fitzsimmons
• Jockey: Earl Sande
• Owner: Belair Stud

Earl Sande may have turned down the mount on an eventual Triple Crown winner in 1919, but he made no such mistake in 1930. Though Sande had never ridden Gallant Fox during his two-year-old season, he took the call for his sophomore debut in the Wood Memorial. Sande and Gallant Fox won by three lengths, and no other jockey took the call with him in a race again.

In Gallant Fox’s day, the Kentucky Derby was not yet fixed on the first Saturday in May—in fact, the Preakness was the first leg he won. Rallying from eighth early in a field of 11, he made an early bid, one that turned out to be a winning bid, after he fought on to win by three quarters of a length over Crack Brigade.

Eight days later, Gallant Fox showed up at Churchill Downs. He made an early move that day as well, winning by a well-rated two lengths over Gallant Knight in a 15-horse field. Three weeks later at Belmont Park, in a field of just four, Sande cut to the chase. He rode Gallant Fox like he had the best horse, making the early lead and daring the rest to catch him. No one could, and he won by three lengths.

Omaha (1935)

• Trainer: Jim Fitzsimmons
• Jockey: Willie Saunders
• Owner: Belair Stud

Gallant Fox has a legacy that no other horse has yet matched: he sired another Triple Crown winner. That foal was Omaha, in his first crop. Omaha also made Jim Fitzsimmons the first trainer to earn two Triple Crowns, and Belair Stud the first owner to accomplish that feat.

A solid two-year-old, though hardly precocious, Omaha only won once in nine starts as a juvenile, though he finished second four times as well. He hit his stride when he returned at age three and united with jockey Willie Saunders. He began the year with a win in an allowance and finished a belated third in the Wood, setting him up in the Kentucky Derby third off the layoff.

At Churchill Downs, he made an earlier move than he did in the Wood and ran on to win by a comfortable length and a half. Just a week later at Pimlico, Omaha won even more easily. Despite being defeated at odds-on in the Withers the next week, closing late but running out of time, it had him in form for the final leg of a series that was finally being called the Triple Crown. Sitting closer to the pace than usual over the slop at Belmont, Omaha finished best to win by a length and a half, becoming the third horse to win all three races of this historic series.

War Admiral (1937)

• Trainer: George Conway
• Jockey: Charles Kurtsinger
• Owner: Glen Riddle Farms

Man o’ War is one of the best horses in history, but he achieved his fame without a Triple Crown win. After all, it’s a little hard to become a Kentucky Derby winner when the owner decided not to run in the Derby. 17 years after winning the Preakness and the Belmont, Man o’ War made his own Triple Crown history by siring War Admiral.

War Admiral was not a champion juvenile, but he was a good one, winning three of his six outings. However, he came back as an entirely new horse for his sophomore season. He started with wins in an allowance and then the Chesapeake Stakes. Owner Samuel Riddle changed his mind about the Kentucky Derby after 17 years—he wouldn’t run Man o’ War in it, but he decided his son, War Admiral, was ready.

He was ready indeed. Charles Kurtsinger got him to the lead where he was never seriously challenged, and he crossed the wire 1 ¾ lengths clear of Pompoon, who had been thought the superior horse at age two. A week later, War Admiral went wide on both turns at Pimlico, and Pompoon made him battle, but he held by a head. His Belmont could have been even more nightmarish, as War Admiral acted up before the race and grabbed a quarter on the way out of the gate. No matter: he bounced to the lead, dominated throughout, and won by three lengths.

Whirlaway (1941)

• Trainer: Ben Jones
• Jockey: Eddie Arcaro
• Owner: Calumet Farm

Whirlaway liked to act out, he liked to bear out, and at one point Ben Jones called Whirlaway “the dumbest horse I’ve ever trained.” However, he most certainly wasn’t the slowest—he won 32 times in 60 starts from ages two through five, and became the first of two Triple Crown winners for both jockey Eddie Arcaro and his owner-breeder, the famed Calumet Farm.

He was already on the map at age two, earning the Turf and Sport Digest’s honors as the champion juvenile. He also already had an extensive campaign heading into the Kentucky Derby: he had run seven times, including three wins, leading into it. Despite early trouble that had Whirlaway well off the pace early, he not only mustered a rally but rolled clear to win by eight lengths, tied for the biggest margin in history.

In the Preakness Stakes, it was more of the same for Whirlaway: he was well off the pace, gobbled up ground, and ran off to win by 5 ½ lengths. Ten days later, he won an allowance race despite drifting out badly late. It was enough to keep him in form for the Belmont, two and a half weeks after that. In a field of just four in that third leg of the series, Whirlaway was closer to the pace than usual and galloped home to win by 2 ½ lengths, never seriously threatened in the final jewel.

Count Fleet (1943)

• Trainer: Don Cameron
• Jockey: Johnny Longden
• Owner: Fannie Hertz

Being by Kentucky Derby winner Reigh Count out of a mare named Quickly, it seemed apt that hopes would be high for Count Fleet. Jockey Johnny Longden convinced John and Fannie Hertz to keep the colt. Longden rode him in every one of his starts, and his judgment proved apt. In 15 starts as a juvenile, Count Fleet won 10 times, including a 30-length procession in the Walden Stakes at Pimlico, the final start of his championship two-year-old year.

At three, he was even better. He got his hooves wet with a stalk-and-pounce win in allowance company to start the year, and was never behind at a single call for the rest of his racing career. He wired the Wood. He wired the Kentucky Derby. He wired the Preakness. He even showed up for the Withers two weeks after the Preakness, taking that gate-to-wire as well.

Only two foes dared face Count Fleet in the Belmont Stakes, and they were overmatched. “Galloping,” read the short comment on the chart…he was already eight lengths clear at the first call, and 25 clear at the end. Unfortunately, he came out of the race with an ankle injury and never raced again, but his six brilliant races were enough to make him horse of the year.

Assault (1946)

• Trainer: Max Hirsch
• Jockey: Warren Mehrtens
• Owner: King Ranch

King Ranch still exists, and still does farming, cattle ranching, and quarter-horse breeding in Texas. However, they ventured into the Thoroughbred horse racing world in the mid-20th century, and reached its pinnacle with Assault. It was a miracle he made it to the races at all: as a weanling, he stepped on something sharp, and grew into an awkward walk and trot to protect the foot. Still, Assault galloped sound and he galloped fast.

Assault hardly looked like a Triple Crown contender at two: he raced nine times as a juvenile, winning just twice, and was a 70-1 outsider in his lone stakes win over the Belmont slop. But, he won the Experimental Free Handicap no. 1 and the Wood in his first two starts at age three, and was a closing fourth in the Derby Trial four days before the Run for the Roses.

On Derby Day, Assault was at his best, galloping clear to tie Whirlaway’s record winning margin of eight lengths. In the Preakness Stakes, matters were a lot closer: he was well clear midstretch, but held by a neck over Lord Boswell to be the first horse across the wire, keeping his bid for history alive. Lord Boswell was bet down to favoritism three weeks later in the Belmont Stakes … but Assault carried the day under a tactical ride from Warren Mehrtens, winning by three lengths and bringing a Triple Crown to the Lone Star state.

Citation (1948)

• Trainer: Ben and Horace Jones
• Jockey: Eddie Arcaro
• Owner: Calumet Farm

Whirlaway carried Ben Jones, Eddie Arcaro, and Calumet to Triple Crown victory once in 1941, and all three would return to that glory just seven years later with Citation. Ben Jones was training with his son Horace by then; Ben was the trainer of record for the Derby, with Horace named as such after.

It was an embarrassment of riches for Calumet that year. Though Citation was the reigning champion two-year-old, there was hot debate over which horse would carry the devil’s red and blue of Calumet to the Churchill winners’ circle—Citation or Coaltown? The answer was Citation, who chased the early pace, rallied, and won by 3 ½ lengths over his stablemate.

Through the rest of the season, there was no question who had the spotlight. Two weeks later in the Preakness Stakes, Citation would be sent off the 1-10 favorite, and post an easy gate-to-wire victory. The same thing happened in the Jersey Stakes two weeks later, and once again in the Belmont Stakes in early June, a race he won by 11 lengths while cementing his name in Triple Crown history.

Secretariat (1973)

• Trainer: Lucien Laurin
• Jockey: Ron Turcotte
• Owner: Meadow Stable

There has never been a more iconic Triple Crown winner than Secretariat, and it is hard to imagine there ever will be. He is perhaps the most iconic figure in all of horse racing. Big Red was a sensation at two and continued to build his legend at age three. He set a record time in all three races of the Triple Crown, marks that all still stand today.

Secretariat came into the Kentucky Derby off of a shock defeat in the Wood Memorial, where he finished third behind stablemate Angle Light and his west coast-rival Sham. It was the first time since his debut that he didn’t cross the wire first. However, on the first Saturday in May, he turned the tables. Battling Sham in the lane, Secretariat opened up to win by 2 ½ lengths, becoming the first Kentucky Derby runner to get 1 ¼ miles in less than two minutes. (The second to do so? Sham, a fraction of a second later.) Two weeks later in the Preakness, Secretariat bounded to the lead and held his old foe Sham at bay again, leading at every call and winning by 2 ½ lengths.

Three weeks later, Secretariat ran the most legendary horse race in history. His time of 2:24 for 1 ½ miles on dirt is still the fastest ever. There is still a pole at Belmont Park, checkered in the blue and white of Meadow Stable, 31 lengths from the wire, marking the distance between Secretariat and Twice a Prince.

Seattle Slew (1977)

• Trainer: William Turner, Jr.
• Jockey: Jean Cruguet
• Owner: Karen Taylor

All nine horses who won the Triple Crown before Seattle Slew had at least one thing in common: they had tasted defeat. That was not the case for Seattle Slew. He raced just three times as a juvenile, including only once in stakes company, but his 9 ¾-length tour de force in the Hopeful (G1) sealed up champion honors.

Seattle Slew’s early speed carried him to more wins at three. He danced nine lengths clear in an allowance at Hialeah to win his seasonal debut, then went gate-to-wire in the Flamingo (G1) and the Wood (G1). He was the odds-on favorite in the Kentucky Derby despite 15 horses loading into the starting gate. And, though he had to battle up front early, he was three lengths clear through midstretch and stayed on to score by 1 ¾ lengths.

Seattle Slew had to fight up front in the Preakness, as well, but the result was the same: he was well clear midstretch and held to win clear. Belmont Park came up muddy for the Belmont, but he looked like the same Seattle Slew everyone knew. He led at every call and enjoyed a gaping lead all the way down the stretch. He finished four lengths clear, becoming the first horse to remain undefeated until a Triple Crown win. Though he lost his next start in the Swaps (G1), his spring and summer were more than enough to make him Horse of the Year.

Affirmed (1978)

• Trainer: Laz Barrera
• Jockey: Steve Cauthen
• Owner: Harbor View Farm

Was there ever a greater rivalry in horse racing than Affirmed and Alydar? It went back to their juvenile year—Alydar handed Affirmed his first-ever loss in the Great American Stakes in July. Affirmed struck back in the Hopeful (G1) and Futurity (G1), Alydar struck in the Champagne (G1), and Affirmed struck back in the Laurel Futurity (G1).

Horses develop differently, and a great rivalry at age two does not imply a similarly thrilling renewal as three-year-old horses. And yet, both Affirmed and Alydar made it to the starting gate for the 1978 Kentucky Derby. It was Alydar who went off the narrow 6-5 favorite in the Run for the Roses … but the more forwardly-placed Affirmed gave him the slip, holding him off by 1 ½ lengths to take the blanket of roses.

Alydar made it tougher for Affirmed two weeks later at Pimlico. Affirmed led at every call, but Alydar threw down in the stretch. Affirmed battled back, winning by a neck in the end. The Belmont was just as thrilling … a true 1 ½-mile battle that went to Affirmed by a head in the end, with 13 lengths back to the rest. Alydar made Affirmed work his hardest through every leg of the Triple Crown. Affirmed affirmed his own greatness by finding enough.

American Pharoah (2015)

• Trainer: Bob Baffert
• Jockey: Victor Espinoza
• Owner: Zayat Stables

In the 37 years after Affirmed won the Triple Crown, the horse racing world began to wonder whether the grueling five-week race schedule needed to be slackened, never mind those early Triple Crown winners who had run four races in that time and not three. Word on the street from the beginning was that American Pharoah could be good enough to rain on that drought. He finished only fifth behind eventual Grade 1 winner Om on debut, but after wins in the Del Mar Futurity (G1) and FrontRunner (G1), his stock rose again and he earned champion juvenile honors.

Wins in both the Rebel (G2) and the Arkansas Derby (G1) had him in strong form headed into the Run for the Roses. His stablemate Dortmund set the early pace, and the plucky Firing Line pushed him hard down the lane, but American Pharoah kept finding to prevail by a length. Two weeks later, on a disgustingly wet Preakness day, he bounced to the lead and never gave anyone a chance, sauntering seven lengths clear to keep his bid alive.

Three weeks later in the Belmont, Espinoza took advantage of American Pharoah’s speed once again. He set an uncontested pace, and though Frosted chased admirably down the lane, American Pharoah drew off to win by 5 ½ lengths. He proved that the most legendary achievement in American horse racing was still possible.

Justify (2018)

• Trainer: Bob Baffert
• Jockey: Mike Smith
• Owners: China Horse Club, Head of Plains Partners, Starlight Racing, WinStar Farm

Though it was 37 years without a Triple Crown before American Pharoah, horse racing only had to wait three more years for its lucky thirteenth winner. Though Justify wasn’t in line to break a long Triple Crown drought, he had to break a different one on the way to Triple Crown glory. No horse since Apollo in 1882 had won the Derby without racing at age two. Justify, a hulking chestnut by Scat Daddy, did not make his debut until February 18 of his three-year-old year. He won that, then an allowance, and then the Santa Anita Derby in order to make his way into the Kentucky Derby starting gate.

In the Derby, he stalked the pace set by longshot Promises Fulfilled before taking over and clearing off to win by 2 ½ lengths over Good Magic, the champion juvenile of the year before. Two weeks later, in the Preakness, he handled the slop like a pro, battling on the pace and digging in to deny the cavalry charge of Bravazo, Tenfold, and his old pal Good Magic. Three weeks later, in the Belmont, Mike Smith let him wing it on the lead. Bids from Vino Rosso and Gronkowski both came up short, and Justify won by 1 ¾ lengths.

That made Justify the second horse after Seattle Slew to win the Triple Crown while still undefeated. He was also the only Triple Crown winner to retire undefeated, as he never raced again after the Belmont.

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