Pletcher, American Pharoah lead Hall of Fame inductees

Todd Pletcher led the inductees into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame at Saratoga Springs, N.Y., on Friday, which covered the classes of 2020 and 2021.

The combined induction ceremony, after last year’s was postponed due to the pandemic, featured Pletcher and a list of other high-profile inductees that included Mark Casse, American Pharoah and Wise Dan.

Pletcher, who was introduced by Mike Repole of Repole Stable, noted he was “humbled” to be in the Hall of Fame.

“Most of all I want to thank the horses, the horses and the horses,” Pletcher said, crediting the line to the late Cot Campbell, himself a Hall of Fame inductee as a "Pillar of the Turf."

Pletcher also thanked a host of others who he said made his career possible.

“It’s been an army,” Pletcher said. “I’ve been blessed with some of thes best team members, co-workers, friends that have contributed so much to this. It really is a team award in my opinion.”

Repole, who Pletcher praised for keeping his introduction speech under 30 minutes, heaped superlatives onto the trainer.

“He’s an icon,” Repole said. “He’s a legend and he’s going to go down as one of the greatest of all time.”

Joining Pletcher and steeplechase conditioner Jack Fisher as the trainers in Friday’s group of inductees was Casse, who joined the hall as part of the class of 2020. Casse was introduced by owner/breeder Aron Yagoda.

“Mark’s success is not by luck, nor is it by accident,” Yagoda said. “Owners are attracted to Mark because he’s a great communicator, a great horseman, very professional and he gets results.”

When at the podium to accept the honor, Casse thanked a laundry list of family and supporters. He also spoke of a 1972 visit to the Hall of Fame with his father, Norman, a well-known breeder who died in 2017.

“At the end of the visit I confidently told my dad, ‘I will be in here someday’ and like any good father will do, he said ‘yes Mark, you will,’” Casse said, fighting back tears at the memory. “Well, we did it.”

Joining the trainers was 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah. Owner Ahmed Zayat gave the acceptance speech. Zayat struck on the universal appeal of American Pharoah, who he called “America’s horse.”

“For me and my family it was elation,” Zayat said of the scene following American Pharoah's Belmont Stakes victory. “It was surreal. I didn’t believe it really happened. Looking a the crowd and what had happened for minutes and minutes and minutes of pure elation, hugging, that sight will always be in my heart.”

Bob Baffert, who trained American Pharoah throughout his career, expressed his appreciation for the horse in a social media post on Friday.

“When you think of first ballot Hall of Famers, you think of names like Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky and Joe Montana,” Baffert said. “Today American Pharoah is being inducted as a first ballot Hall of Famer. In the history of our game, he is right up there with Secretariat, Seattle Slew, (Man o’ War), Citation, Count Fleet and Affirmed. He is our Ruth, Jordan, Gretzky and Montana. It was one of the greatest honors and privileges of my career to train him.”

Wise Dan, who won six Eclipse Awards throughout his career and won the Breeders’ Cup Mile in 2012 and 2013, also joined the Hall Friday as part of the 2020 class of inductees.

Trainer Charlie LoPresti spoke on behalf of the gelded son of Wiseman’s Ferry.

“Wise Dan is an incredible horse,” LoPresti said. “He touched the lives of a lot of people. He was just an incredible athlete. I was so lucky. Trainers, their whole life, try to have a horse like that and I was so lucky to be associated with him.”

Other inductees included Fisher, the only steeplechase trainer to earn more than $1 million in purses in a single year, and jockey Darrel McHargue, who was unable to attend the ceremony. Tom Bowling, who raced between 1872 and 1874, was inducted from the 2020 class.

Several others were recognized as “Pillars of the Turf,” a designation that seeks to honor them for outstanding contributions to the sport. Those honorees included Alice Headley Chandler, J. Keene Dangerfield and George D. Widener Jr.