Never Bend
| Never Bend | |
|---|---|
| Sire | Never Bend Handicap at Pimlico Race Course |
Never Bend (1960–1977) was a champion American
American Champion Two-Year-Old
and later became a leading sire in England.
Racing career
1962: Two-year-old season
Foaled at
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Two-Year-Old Male Horse, and he was considered an early favorite for the ensuing 1963 U.S. Triple Crown
races.
1963: Three-year-old season
Kentucky Derby
The 1963 edition of the Kentucky Derby, the first leg of the Triple Crown series, saw 120,000 patrons gather at Churchill Downs for a race that featured three Thoroughbred stars. TIME magazine reported jockey Eddie Arcaro as saying: "I can't remember a Derby creating so much excitement."[1]
Although Never Bend had won the
Hialeah Park and the Stepping Stone Purse at Churchill Downs, leading up to May's Kentucky Derby he had been outshone by the undefeated Candy Spots, that had won the Florida Derby and Santa Anita Derby. At the same time, a Greentree Stable colt named No Robbery had won the Wood Memorial Stakes and also came into the Derby undefeated. By post time, bettors made Candy Spots the 3–2 favorite, No Robbery the second choice at 5–2, then Never Bend the third choice at odds of 3–1. When the gate opened, Never Bend quickly took the lead and held it until the eighth pole, when Chateaugay
came from sixth place to win by 1¼ lengths.
Preakness Stakes
In the
Baltimore, Maryland
, Never Bend again faced Candy Spots and Chateaugay. Bettors still made Candy Spots the favorite. As he had in the Derby, Never Bend charged out to an early lead with Candy Spots in third. As they turned into the homestretch, Chateaugay came from well back to catch and pass Never Bend, that had fallen behind the then front-running Candy Spots. He finished third behind Chateaugay and the race winner, Candy Spots.
Later three-year-old season
Never Bend did not run in the third leg of the U.S. Triple Crown series. Before being retired, in the fall of that year, he finished second to
United Nations Handicap and second to the Kelso in the Woodward Stakes. In October, Never Bend easily defeated Chateaugay in winning the Yankee Handicap by four lengths at Suffolk Downs.
[2]
[2]
Retirement and Breeding Career
Never Bend retired to stand at
Eclipse Award sprinter in the U.S. at age four, that handed Seattle Slew his first defeat. Never Bend was also the broodmare sire of 115 stakes winners, with two of his mares voted Kentucky Broodmare of the Year.[3]
| Foaled | Name | Sex | Major Wins/Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Mill Reef | Stallion | Epsom Derby, Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe |
| 1968 | Triple Bend | Stallion | Santa Anita Handicap |
| 1969 | Riverman | Stallion | Poule d'Essai des Poulains, Leading sire in France (1980, 1981) |
Never Bend died in 1977 at the age of 17.
Pedigree
| Sire Nasrullah |
Nearco | Pharos | Phalaris |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scapa Flow | |||
| Nogara | Havresac | ||
| Catnip | |||
| Mumtaz Begum | Blenheim | Blandford | |
| Malva | |||
| Mumtaz Mahal | The Tetrarch | ||
| Lady Josephine | |||
| Dam Lalun
|
Djeddah | Djebel | Tourbillon |
| Loika | |||
| Djezima | Asterus | ||
| Heldifann | |||
| Be Faithful | Bimelech | Black Toney | |
| La Troienne | |||
| Bloodroot | Blue Larkspur | ||
| Knockaney Bridge (family: 19-b) |