The better Triple Crown winner: Justify or American Pharoah?
Over the weekend, I watched a massive red colt gallop across the finish line and directly into the history books. His hoofprints moved alongside the 12 Triple Crown that came before him, only stopping when his position was assured among the all time greats. His name is Justify.
Three years ago, I watched another young superstar do the same thing. This one was slender like a track athlete in prime condition, and a shiny, polished brown. His name was American Pharoah.Both of these colts accomplished a feat that was seen as nearly impossible for 37 years of heartbreak after Belmont Stakes heartbreak. They secured the most elusive title in all of sports. They passed the test of the champion. They won the American Triple Crown. And both of them made it look fairly easy.
Looking at the Triple Crown trail of each champion objectively provides some insight to the question that threatens to consume the attention of the entire horse racing community. Comparing times, positions, winning margins, quality of the break, whether the track was fast or slop -- all of these are factors in day-to-day horse races. There are unheard of horses that run faster fractions than either Triple Crown winner did at the 2-year old undertack showings. Those same horses might have flawless breaks in a low level claiming race, or run well over the slop in the same race. This doesn’t mean that they will ever have their names etched into the history books alongside these two colts.
My point here is that I don’t believe that it is a matter of who won by more, who ran faster, or who won more impressively. There is a reason why those horses that I mentioned above remain unheard of: they don’t captivate the nation like these two do. I do believe that there is a debate brewing among horse racing fans, both casual and dedicated, but I do not believe that it is one over which was the most objectively impressive. I like to think that rather than this, it is a debate over which horse had a larger impact on the sport with what they did.
For me, American Pharoah wins every time.
American Pharoah was the 14th horse to waltz into the Belmont with a shot at the Triple Crown in nearly four decades. Each horse before him, starting with Spectacular Bid in 1979 running through California Chrome in 2014, had taken the nation by storm, carrying the hopes of millions on their shoulders around Belmont’s sweeping turns. But American Pharoah had a different vibe surrounding him as he paraded onto the mile and a half oval that June day. He seemed invincible. He was a shining light after years of darkness. His victory that day was larger than life. It was a victory not only for him an his connections, but for the sport.
The bay colt’s personality only built his popularity. I have personally met American Pharoah, and can vouch for the fact that he is one of the sweetest horses I have ever met. He shares a certain likeness to LeBron James, who, despite all of the success he has enjoyed, remains down to earth and helps others before he helps himself. “He is just a horse,” some may say, but he's so much more to so may people. American Pharoah drew in many fans who had drifted away. On a broad level, his victory restored hope that nothing is impossible.
I am not trying to take away anything from what Justify did Saturday, and I do not deny that he rightfully takes his place among the all time greats now. I just do not believe that Justify captivated his audience like American Pharoah did three years ago. There was a certain vulnerability that hung over him leading up to the Belmont, which was not present for his bay counterpart. Justify won all three of his Triple Crown races in dramatic fashion. He practically swam his way through the wettest Kentucky Derby on record, charged through the fog in the Preakness, and waltzed his way through the Belmont without a single error.
However, the whole situation seemed relatively quiet compared to the one three years prior. Was it the recency of this try? For some, possibly. But for the majority of us, it was because there were doubts. Nobody wanted to speak out about Justify’s chances as we had with Pharoah previously. It was comparable to carrying a glass vase, and watching every step you take to make sure you don’t trip and drop it. And I believe this is where we see Justify’s lack of superiority in this debate.
Though some may refute it, American Pharoah’s image of invincibility throughout the end of the Triple Crown is what makes him the greater Triple Crown winner to me -- not the times, the tracks, the positions, the jockey or the break. Having one day in the last 37 years in which the world could expect with confidence a Triple Crown winner is far more impressive to me than having a second day that was spent asking questions and debating whether or not we even wanted another Triple Crown winner.
This sport is about community, and that is what American Pharoah gave us without a doubt. He took racing fans around the world on the ride of a lifetime. For that, I will always consider him to be the greatest racehorse in recent times.
Kassidy Lammers is an incoming junior in high school from Ohio. She has owned and shown American Quarter Horses for more than half of her life, and has achieved success at a national level doing so. Kassidy closely follows Thoroughbred racing and plans to pursue a career in the field in the future.