Southern California's Greatest Racehorses: Sunday Silence
There are often matchups in sports where it is difficult to think of one competitor and not the other. Army and Navy on the gridiron, Duke and North Carolina on the hardwood, and of course, Red Sox and Yankees on the diamond, are a few that come to mind. When it comes to late twentieth century rivalries in thoroughbred racing perhaps Affirmed and Alydar are first, but not too far behind are the great battles that occurred during the 1989 thoroughbred-racing season. It was a West Coast conditioned, black colored son of Halo, and the 1988 two-year old champion from the Ogden Phipps, stable that butted heads and created some of the best on track clashes in the modern era. The duels between Easy Goer and a hard trying Charlie Whittingham trained colt from the West Coast were some of my first recollections of thoroughbred racing and what memories they were. The son of Halo, Sunday Silence, is the focus of this rendition of “Southern California Racing Greats.”
Sunday Silence’s life as a racehorse almost never took place. Not only was the lean colt passed over twice as a yearling, but he nearly died from a freak virus as a weanling and once again escaped fatal injury when he was in a van accident at the age of two. As fate had it, the Hall of Famer Whittingham and Dr. Ernest Galliard ended up purchasing half interest in the colt while original owner Arthur Hancock III retained the other half. As the saying goes, “The rest is history."
Despite a less than perfect start to his life and some unruly behavior during workouts, Sunday Silence’s racing career commenced on October 30, 1988, at Santa Anita Park when he narrowly missed hitting the wire first in a maiden special weight event. He returned to the track less than three weeks later at Hollywood Park and showed his dominance by crushing a group in a dazzling time of 1:09.4 at the six-furlong distance. Little did racing fans know this was just the start of an amazing run of racing brilliance.
The Whittingham runner stepped up to face winners for the first time on December 3, and like in his debut, he just missed. He avenged this loss three months later in his first start as a three-year-old by defeating an allowance group by four and a half lengths. It was onto stakes company from here.
The Grade II San Felipe was his first task and he handled that by capturing the eight and a half furlong event. The connections now had their sights set on the annual “Run for the Roses” at Churchill Downs, but first came the Grade I Santa Anita Derby. A quick early pace was set over the Arcadia, California surface by D. Wayne Lukas trained Houston. Sunday Silence settled comfortably just off the pace in third and then with three-eights of a mile to go, the champion colt made his move and just like that the race was over. Southern California race caller Trevor Denman declared, “Sunday Silence is in a class of his own” as he romped to an eleven-length score. It was on to Louisville for the Kentucky Derby.
May 6, 1989 was the date and due to inclement weather the track came up muddy for the year’s most coveted three-year-old event. As veteran race caller Dave Johnson said before they left the gates that Saturday afternoon, “This is what thoroughbred racing is all about.” Sunday Silence came in a bit at the start, but got a solid spot at the rail in fourth just ahead of the betting favorite Easy Goer. As they straightened away in the stretch, regular jockey Pat Valenzuela took the lead.
Despite ducking in and brushing Northern Wolf, when tapped by the right hand of “P Val”, and veering quite a bit in the stretch, Sunday Silence was able to win the Kentucky Derby by 2 1/2-lengths in the end. In post race analysis, some experts believed the best horse won the 115th Derby, while others gave Easy Goer a pass given the off track. No matter the outlook, the stage was set for a rematch two weeks later in Baltimore, Maryland.
Despite the incredible battle that ensued at Pimlico Race Course on May 20, both Easy Goer and Sunday Silence entered the gates with ailments that could have compromised their chances in the Preakness Stakes. Sunday Silence was diagnosed with a bruise under his sole, while the Derby runner up was dealing with minor issues on his heels, ankles, and knees. Despite the health issues, the two superstars gave monster efforts and provided thoroughbred fans with a race they will never forget.
Easy Goer drew the 2-hole and was hammered down to 3-5. The Derby winner drew the 8-post and once again was the second choice in the wagering. Sunday Silence broke well, while Easy Goer hopped a bit at the start, but recovered fine for jockey Pat Day. Houston and Northern Wolf took the early lead allowing Valenzuela to settle in comfortably just off the pace. Day and Easy Goer sat right behind his chief rival. Then, the Hall of Famer, Day on Easy Goer made an uncustomary early move down the backstretch. Sunday Silence was caught in tight between the early pace setter Houston and the favorite. For a moment he dropped back to third before re-engaging the Phipps runner and setting up arguably one of the greatest stretch battles in American thoroughbred racing history.
As Dave Johnson proclaimed, “And down the stretch they come!” the two racing greats fought it out, with Easy Goer on the inside and Sunday Silence on the outside. It appeared that the Phipps owned colt may get the best of the Derby victor, but when they hit the wire Johnson declared, “photo finish, noses apart, I can’t tell.” However, Patrick Valenzuela knew. Sunday Silence prevailed yet again and moved one step closer to the first Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978. Despite an objection from Pat Day, as well as admittance from him and trainer Shug McGaughey that he made a mistake moving too early, the lean son of Halo had once again shown the heart of a champion in Baltimore. It was onto Belmont Park and a chance to make history for the colt that no one wanted just a short time before.
Much like racing fans have been accustomed to before American Pharoah broke the 37-year drought in 2015, the Derby and Preakness winner did not get it done at the twelve furlong distance in Elmont, New York. The two-year-old champion, Easy Goer finally put it all together and was brilliant in the third leg of the Triple Crown, finishing with an eye-popping time of 2:26. Sunday Silence could do no better than a distant second. However, he would win the $1 million Visa Triple Crown bonus for best in the three-year-old series.
After the Belmont, Charlie Whittingham brought Sunday Silence back to Southern California. He was entered just six weeks later in the $400,000 Grade II Swaps Stakes at Hollywood Park, but the 1-5 favorite could do no better than second. Patrick Valenzuela seemed to have the compact five-horse field defeated, but a late run from 5-1 second choice Prized was good enough to upset the Derby and Preakness winner in the final strides. “The Bald Eagle” gave Sunday Silence a two-month layoff before taking the track again in the $1 million Grade I Super Derby at Louisiana Downs. This time the son of Halo was sent off at odds of 2-5 and did not disappoint. Valenzuela kept him a few lengths off the pace early and saved ground in hand before moving up into slow fractions, arresting the lead, and winning by over seven lengths in the end. He was ready for his final face-off with Easy Goer in the $3 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Gulfstream Park.
While Sunday Silence was ready for the November 4 matchup, the colt would have to compete without his regular rider. Patrick Valenzuela, who rode the colt in all of his stakes performances until this point, had been suspended for cocaine use. The more than capable Chris McCarron replaced him.
As they went to the post, the betting public made Easy Goer the heavy 1-2 favorite. Sunday Silence went off at a solid 2-1. The Phipps runner broke a step slowly, while McCarron got his mount out of the gates smoothly and rated Sunday Silence six-lengths off the early lead of pace setter Slew City Slew, who in Tom Durkin’s words “zipped the opening quarter in 22 and two fifth seconds.” As they hit the stretch, the two champions approached the leaders. The “stage was set” for one final stretch battle. Blushing John took the lead with three-eighths of a mile out, but was overtaken by the Whittingham runner despite a gallant third place effort. Easy Goer came with what Durkin described as “one final acceleration,” but it was not enough. Sunday Silence had captured America’s richest race. In doing so he earned at the time a single-season record of $4.59 million including seven wins in nine starts. It was truly one of the greatest racing campaigns of the twentieth-century.
Sunday Silence returned to the races in the summer of 1990 after a lengthy eight-month layoff. He scared away the competition and faced just a three-horse field in the Grade I Californian at Hollywood Park. Patrick Valenzuela was back on the 1989 Horse of the Year and he did not disappoint despite an incredible effort from runner up Stylish Winner. The four-year-old raced one final time in the Grade I Hollywood Cup three weeks later, but was defeated in yet another dramatic stretch drive by Calumet Farm’s Criminal Type.
In early August, it was reported that Sunday Silence was retired from racing because of a torn ligament in his foreleg. He finished his career never finishing worse than second. His nine wins and five runner up efforts in fourteen starts earned him just under five million dollars. Not bad for a horse that was bypassed twice in the sales ring.
Similar to the start of his life, American breeders ignored Sunday Silence when it came time to think about his career after racing. He was eventually sold to Japanese breeder Zenya Yoshida’s Shadai Stallion Station on the island of Hokkaido and flourished as a sire in Japan. The list of successful progeny is quite lengthy, but includes the likes of Dance Partner, Daiwa Major, and the great Deep Impact. His sons have also gone on to become successful breeding stallions.
Sunday Silence was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1996, and died of heart failure on August 19, 2002. As Jay Hovdey of the Daily Racing Form reported, “They say he fought to the end, which is really no surprise.” Over a decade later, one can only marvel at the career of one of the true Southern California Racing Greats.