Hall of Fame Profile: Heir to the Throne

Original article written by Dan Kauffman posted 8 years 0 weeks ago

If ever a thoroughbred was aptly named, it was Heir to the Throne. Sired by Louisville Derby champion and prolific stud Loki Flame, out of undefeated Baltimore Crown champion Forever Risk -- who produced seven millionaires herself -- great things were expected from Jess Paquette's chestnut foal before it even took its first steps.

Heir to the Throne opened his career in a 6-furlong maiden special weight dirt sprint for juveniles at Long Island Park in Year 8, Week 4. Also in the 11-horse field was future two-time Grade 1 winner Fenix, but he was no match for Heir to the Throne, who showed his potential right from the start.

Three weeks later, Heir to the Throne made the short trip to The Spa for the Grade 1, 7-furlong Hopeful Stakes. This was some four-horse field, including future Steward's Cup Sprint winner Out of Focus as well as Grade 1 winners Loki Ruler (who won six graded stakes races and more than $1.6 million in his career) and Chariots of Fire. It was a major step up in class, but Heir to the Throne met the challenge, improving to 2-for-2.

In Week 10, Heir to the Throne traveled to Lexington, Kentucky for a 7-furlong allowance sprint and easily crushed his only two challengers, Star Success and California Comic -- neither of whom ever won a race.

Two weeks later, Heir to the Throne capped his juvenile season in the Grade 1, 1 1/16-mile Remsen Stakes back at Long Island Park. For the first time, he would run a legit route race -- one that included future major Grade 1 winners Raindrops on Roses and Fighting With Wit. In his toughest test yet, Heir to the Throne again came up with the goods to finish Year 8 a perfect 4-for-4 and put himself front and center in the Year 9 Louisville Derby conversation.

Heir to the Throne opened Year 9 with a prep race for the Derby, the Grade 1, 1 1/16-mile San Felipe Stakes at Arcadia Park in California. The six-horse field was devoid of any serious challengers as the other Derby notables avoided the undefeated 3-year-old, who romped to his fifth victory in as many starts.

Two weeks later, a full field of 20 entered the starting gate for the Louisville Derby. Challengers included Smoke and Flame (7-for-7 lifetime, the Steward's Cup Juvenile champion who won the Florida Derby the week before), Raindrops on Roses (the Southern California Derby winner a week before), Onwardsilverstreak (5-for-5 lifetime with two Grade 1 and four graded stakes wins), Fenix (the Bluegrass Stakes winner the week before), Courageous (the Fountain of Youth Stakes winner two weeks earlier and owner of three graded stakes titles), Almost Paradise (the Arkansas Derby winner the week before), Rain Maker (the Bay Shore Stakes winner a week before) and Perfect Storm (the Lexington Stakes winner two weeks prior). At the end, it cames down to Raindrops on Roses and Heir to the Throne, and Raindrops on Roses avenged his loss in the Remsen Stakes the year before with a bit of a surprise victory under the twin spires.

Heir to the Throne would skip the Baltimore Crown (won by Perfect Storm after a dismal 12th-place finish in the Derby) and headed to the familiar Long Island track as the favorite for the Long Island Classic in Week 6. In addition to Smoke and Flame (fifth in the Derby), the 10-horse field included Louisville Oaks runner-up Goodbyenotforever and a couple of challengers who looked to bounce back from Derby disappointments in Wood Memorial winner Meetmeingothamcity and Southern California Stakes runner-up Caccio al Ladro. Indeed, Caccio al Ladro was starting to find his form, rebounding from a 10th-place effort in the Derby to challenge Heir to the Throne up front (he'd go on to win the Midsummer Classic three weeks later). But in the end, Heir to the Throne lived up to his billing and scored his biggest victory yet.

Riding that high, Heir to the Throne made the short trip to Garden State Racetrack in New Jersey two weeks later for the Grade 1, $1 million Haskell Invitational, covering 1 1/8 miles. The strongest challenger in a pretty weak five-horse field was Fighting With Wit, whose best results were still ahead of him ... as was Heir to the Throne on this day as he scored his second straight major victory.

Two weeks later, Heir to the Throne traveled to Miami for the Grade 2, 1 1/8-mile Tropical Derby. This was little more than a tune-up for a highly anticipated match race against stablemate Brilliancefindsaway two weeks later, as this six-horse field did not have another Grade 1 winner in it (The Rocket did win three graded stakes races, at least). Heir to the Throne cruised to his third straight victory to make it 8-for-9 in his career.

"The Match Race," as it was billed, featured a $2 million purse and was held over 1 1/4 miles at Long Island Park to close Year 9. It would cap an undefeated career (11-for-11) for future Hall of Famer Brilliancefindsaway, who won Horse of the Year and Champion Older Horse honors after turning back the challenge of Heir to the Throne. In his career, Brilliancefindsaway won the Queen's Derby, the Arcadia Handicap and the Baltimore Special. Heir to the Throne still was crowned the Champion Three Year Old Colt.

Heir to the Throne's first outing as a 4-year-old came in Year 10, Week 2 at Sunshine Park in Florida, in the Grade 2, $500,000 Gulfstream Park Handicap over 1 1/4 miles. The nine-horse field included two-time Grade 1 winner Canyon, the only real threat. Heir to the Throne took care of business and set his sights on a bigger goal two weeks later.

That goal was the 1 1/4-mile Desert World Cup, as Heir to the Throne made the long trip to Desert Oasis Park for the richest race in the world ($6 million at the time). Only four horses took the starting gate, including star filly Valentine -- the Steward's Cup Distaff and Louisville Oaks champion who had finished second in this race last year -- and familiar foe Caccio al Ladro. As expected, the battle was between the two future Hall of Famers and it went all the way to the wire, with Heir to the Throne beating Valentine by a head for the biggest victory of his career.

Heir to the Throne took seven weeks off before the final race of his career, the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup over 1 1/4 miles back at Long Island Park. The top challenger in a weak seven-horse field was graded stakes winner Reaching for Stars, the Sun City Handicap winner earlier in the year. But it was a blowout from the start, with Heir to the Throne easing into retirement with a five-length victory -- his fourth in a million-dollar race -- and Champion Older Horse honors. He finished 11-for-13 lifetime with $6.87 million in earnings, ranking 27th all-time.

While not one of the great studs of the SIM, Heir to the Throne wasn't a total dud in the breeding shed, either. His progeny earned almost $19 million, with three million-dollar earners, including one of the SIM's all-time greats:

* Throne, 10-for-15, more than $9 million (fourth all-time), Desert World Cup and Steward's Cup Classic champion, Horse of the Year, Champion Older Horse, Hall of Famer.

* Heres Lookin Atya, 8-for-13, more than $1.9 million, Steward's Cup Sprint champion, Champion Sprinter.

* Dethroned, 5-for-13, more than $1.6 million, Mother Goose Stakes champion.

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