Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

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Shawklit Won
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Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Mon Jul 01, 2019 8:30 pm

My nomination to this would be Tale of S'Avall. He won every non-stakes race he was in starting with his maiden race and then winning three allowance races. He ran in a dozen other races, all stakes races. Eleven of the stakes races were graded, so he wasn't given many easy ones. His wins were all at the big New York tracks, either Saratoga or Belmont. He placed in a couple of graded stakes and finished second in his only non-graded stakes.

He hasn't raced since late in 2017, and he may have won a stakes race by now if he had. I don't know what has become of him. He isn't at stud any place as far as I know and I haven't seen him on any death lists. I hope that he is healthy and happy at some nice farm. His owner is very wealthy, so maybe he wants to keep him near by rather then send him to some faraway farm. He already has two stallions from his sire line (Tale of Ekati) at the Darby Dan Stud farm, so maybe he is reluctant to send Tale of S'Avall there.

Anyway, good luck to him, wherever he is. I think a good nomination to a "best horses to never win a stakes race" list. Opinions are welcome?
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Aug27 » Thu Jul 04, 2019 10:08 am

Interesting topic!

Mylute was a pretty good one that never won a Stakes.
Several top 4 finishes in big races (Preakness, Louisiana Derby, Alysheba, Stephen Foster, Bold Ruler), but never quite able to get home the top prize.

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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Thu Jul 04, 2019 11:48 am

Yep! Mylute would be a contender. Must be frustrating for the owners of horses like Mylute and Tale of S'Avall to keep coming so close but never winning one of those races. They did cash a lot of good checks though.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Fri Jul 05, 2019 8:37 pm

Another contender might be Dark Vader, a son of Tale of Ekati. Dark Vader just finished second in the $300,000. grade 3 Cornhusker Stakes at the Prairie Meadows racetrack. He finished 3rd in the Robert L. Lewis Stakes (G3) and the Easy Goer Stakes, Both at Belmont Park.

The Cornhusker Stakes is the second race for the 4 year old Dark Vader this year (he finished second in an allowance race prior to the Cornhusker Stakes), so it is very possible that he will win one before he is through; maybe this year.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Tue Jul 09, 2019 12:15 pm

I think that Dark Vader is improved this year as a 4 year old and I am very high on him. After a 10 month layoff, he has finished second in two close races, by a head and a neck, the second race a grade 3. I am looking for good things for Dark Vader this year, maybe some graded stakes wins. Just hope he stays healthy.

I think his trainer, Peter Eurton, has done a good job with him. Didn't rush him back.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Tue Jul 23, 2019 8:54 pm

Dark Vader is nominated to the $200,000 Grade 3 West Virginia Governor's Stakes to be run on 8/3/19. Of course, he won't necessarily run in that race, but I think he will if his handlers want him to.

His last race was on 7/5/19, but he hasn't had a public workout since, so I hope he is OK. Dark Vader had a tough race last time out finishing 2nd by a neck in the 1 1/8 mile 300K Grade 3 Cornhusker Handicap, so maybe his trainer is just giving him plenty of time.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Wed Jul 24, 2019 9:31 am

Dark Vader had a 4F workout today at Del Mar. So, we may see him on 8/3 in the Grade 3 West Virginia Governor's Stakes.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby jpshindel » Thu Aug 01, 2019 8:32 am

I'd have to say Danzig, even if it might be cheating a bit since his racing career was cut so short

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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Thu Aug 01, 2019 12:50 pm

I agree. Danzig might have won everything if he had stayed healthy. A very fast horse. He did pretty well as a stallion.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Mon Aug 12, 2019 9:20 pm

How about my namesake, Shawklit Won. He was grade 1 placed, grade 2 placed, and grade 3 placed. Here are some of his races:

At 2: 2nd Tremont Stakes (G3)

At 3: 2nd Gotham Stakes (G2), 3rd Wood Memorial Stakes (G1), 3rd Peter Pan Stakes (G2), and 3rd Bay Shore Stakes (G2).

Pretty good horse despite no stakes wins.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby skeenan » Wed Aug 14, 2019 11:32 am

Here's a variation—I just bought an old Bert Morgan photo of Correlation winning the Wood Memorial. One of a handful of horses favored to win the Ky Derby/Preakness/Belmont and didn't win any of the three races. Thought that was interesting!

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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Wed Aug 14, 2019 10:46 pm

Correlation was really a good horse. He also won the Florida Derby among other wins.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Mon Nov 11, 2019 5:38 pm

Malibu Moon.
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Shawklit Won » Thu Sep 30, 2021 10:28 pm

Shawklit Won wrote:Another contender might be Dark Vader, a son of Tale of Ekati. Dark Vader just finished second in the $300,000. grade 3 Cornhusker Stakes at the Prairie Meadows racetrack. He finished 3rd in the Robert L. Lewis Stakes (G3) and the Easy Goer Stakes, Both at Belmont Park.

The Cornhusker Stakes is the second race for the 4 year old Dark Vader this year (he finished second in an allowance race prior to the Cornhusker Stakes), so it is very possible that he will win one before he is through; maybe this year.



This seems funny to me. Dark Vader has not raced this year and has not raced since August of 1220. He was listed as a horse through his last race.

Now that he has not raced in over a year and has not worked out, he apparently has been gelded. Why geld a horse now that he is not racing any more? It seems like if they were going to geld him, it would have been while he was racing. It doesn't look like he will be racing again, but anything is possible. He has placed in three graded stakes, so he could probably have been a regional stallion someplace.

The only thing I can think of is that he is very difficult to handle, but then why now and not before?
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Re: Best Horses To Never Win A Stakes Race

Postby Mahubah » Fri Oct 01, 2021 5:38 pm

Shawklit Won wrote:
Shawklit Won wrote:Another contender might be Dark Vader, a son of Tale of Ekati. Dark Vader just finished second in the $300,000. grade 3 Cornhusker Stakes at the Prairie Meadows racetrack. He finished 3rd in the Robert L. Lewis Stakes (G3) and the Easy Goer Stakes, Both at Belmont Park.

The Cornhusker Stakes is the second race for the 4 year old Dark Vader this year (he finished second in an allowance race prior to the Cornhusker Stakes), so it is very possible that he will win one before he is through; maybe this year.



This seems funny to me. Dark Vader has not raced this year and has not raced since August of 1220. He was listed as a horse through his last race.

Now that he has not raced in over a year and has not worked out, he apparently has been gelded. Why geld a horse now that he is not racing any more? It seems like if they were going to geld him, it would have been while he was racing. It doesn't look like he will be racing again, but anything is possible. He has placed in three graded stakes, so he could probably have been a regional stallion someplace.

The only thing I can think of is that he is very difficult to handle, but then why now and not before?


Might be to give him a better chance at retraining for a second career. Stallions can be pretty hard to place.
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