At a glance
Identity snapshot
Verified biographical fields, separated from interpretation.
- Foaled
- March 29, 1917, Kentucky, United States
- Life
- 1917-1947
- Sex / color
- Stallion / chestnut
- Hall of Fame
- Inducted 1957
Profile
The story
Bred by August Belmont II, Man o' War was sold with Belmont's yearling crop while the breeder was involved in the First World War effort. Samuel Riddle bought the large chestnut for $5,000 on trainer Louis Feustel's advice. Johnny Loftus rode him through a dominant juvenile season in which he won nine of ten starts. His only defeat came at Saratoga after barrier disruptions, a poor start, and traffic; Upset prevailed by half a length.
With Clarence Kummer becoming his principal rider at three, Man o' War went undefeated in eleven races. Riddle intentionally bypassed the Kentucky Derby, sending him instead to victories in the Preakness, Withers, and Belmont. Later performances expanded his reputation across distances and under significant weight. He ended his career by defeating the older Triple Crown winner Sir Barton in Canada. At stud, Man o' War produced 64 stakes winners from 386 registered foals, including Triple Crown winner War Admiral, and his influence reached both racing and sport-horse pedigrees.
Editorial analysis
Why this horse matters
Man o' War established an American model for the racehorse as both elite athlete and mass cultural attraction. His record combines near-perfect consistency with performances from sprint distances through extended routes, often under weights that materially shaped the conditions. His story also requires era awareness: webbing barriers, timing, surfaces, and campaign patterns differed from modern racing. The strongest comparison is therefore dominance relative to contemporaries, weights carried, margins, and documented records rather than a fabricated modern speed number.
Selected record
Career highlights
A concise chronology of documented championship and major-event performances.
- 1919
Nine-win juvenile season
Won nine of ten starts, including the Hopeful and Futurity.
- 1919
The lone defeat
Finished second to Upset at Saratoga after a difficult start; it remained his only loss.
- 1920
Preakness and Belmont
Won both classics after his owner deliberately skipped the Kentucky Derby.
- 1920
Travers Stakes
Added Saratoga's historic three-year-old feature during an undefeated season.
- 1920
Lawrence Realization
Produced one of the era's most emphatic winning margins at an extended distance.
- 1920
Kenilworth Gold Cup
Defeated Sir Barton in his final start to finish 20-for-21.
Live name watch
News mentioning Man o' War
Exact-name matches from this horse's discipline only. No fuzzy matches, recycled stories or unrelated fallback headlines.
No recent exact-name coverage for Man o' War appears in the monitored thoroughbred racing feeds right now.
Checked Jul 27, 2026, 9:12 PM EDT. No match means only that the current monitored feed window contains no exact reference; it is not a claim that no coverage exists elsewhere.
Open the full live news deskReference desk
Research record
Pedigree, people and career facts remain grouped by type for quick comparison.
Career record
- Career
- 1919-1920
- Starts
- 21
- Record
- 20 wins, 1 second
- Earnings
- $249,465 (historical nominal dollars)
Pedigree
- Sire
- Fair Play
- Dam
- Mahubah
- Damsire
- Rock Sand
Connections
- Breeder
- August Belmont II
- Owner
- Samuel D. Riddle
- Trainer
- Louis Feustel
- Principal riders
- Johnny Loftus and Clarence Kummer
Reading the record
Research context
Technical and historical notes, presented as context rather than instruction.
Starts used a webbing barrier rather than a modern starting gate, an important context for his lone defeat.
Samuel Riddle deliberately skipped the Kentucky Derby; Man o' War did not fail to qualify for it.
Early twentieth-century times, weights, and surfaces are not directly comparable to modern speed figures.
Provenance
Detailed source trail
Open the institutional record behind the dossier and see exactly what each source supports.
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
Man o' War (KY) (opens in a new tab)
Identity, pedigree, connections, campaign, records, stud career, and death.
Accessed July 25, 2026
Kentucky Horse Park
Man o' War (opens in a new tab)
Birthplace, purchase context, color, and memorial legacy.
Accessed July 25, 2026
Data boundary
Unknown is not a blank to fill
This dossier publishes reviewed fields and source-backed editorial analysis only. A field that is not shown remains not established in this source-checked dossier. EquinAtlas does not infer missing results, ownership, health, availability, or commercial terms.