Speightstown (horse)

Speightstown missed the next 10 months, finally returning at age 6 in the Artax Handicap at Gulfstream Park on March 27, 2004. In what would be his first stakes win, Speightstown withstood an early duel for the lead and drew away in the stretch to win by 4+1⁄2 lengths.[18] He followed up in the Churchill Downs Handicap on May 1, where he went wire-to-wire against favoured Congaree to win by 3+1⁄2.[19]

His next start was in the True North Handicap at Belmont on June 5. Speightstown let Cat Genius take the lead, but went by on the backstretch after an opening quarter mile in :21.58. He covered the half in :43.72, five furlongs in a very fast :55.35, and finished the six furlongs in 1:08.04. "The other horses tried to reach him and all I had to do was keep him running", his jockey John Velazquez said. "The only other thing I had to do was steer him clear of traffic and let him run his race. He was awesome."[9]

His next start was the $200,000 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap on August 13 at Saratoga, where he carried the top weight of 120 pounds. He dueled with Mike's Classic through swift fractions of :22 for the first quarter and :44 2/5 for the half. Speightstown finally took command in the final furlong and won by 1+1⁄2 lengths in a time of 1:08.04 for the six furlongs. This tied the track mark set by Spanish Riddle in 1972 while breaking the stakes record of 1:08 1/5 established by Five Star Day in 2000.[20] These records still stand as of 2016.[21] He earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 117 for the race, the highest number earned by a sprinter in 2004.[22]

On October 2, Speightstown returned to Belmont Park as the favorite for the Vosburgh Stakes. He stumbled at the start, then went to the lead but could not sustain his normal pace and faded to third behind Pico Central.[23] "The track was cupping away from him", Pletcher said later. "He is normally an exceptionally quick gate horse and a good gate horse. He just couldn't get his feet underneath him." Pico Central was now considered to be the leader in the sprint division, taking into account two earlier Grade 1 wins. But he had not been nominated as a foal to the Breeders' Cup so his connections opted to bypass the Sprint for the Cigar Mile, in which he would finish third.[24]

With the title of champion sprinter at stake, Speightstown traveled to Texas where the Breeders' Cup was being held at Lone Star Park. Even with Pico Central's absence, the field of 13 for the Breeders' Cup Sprint was top notch, including the defending winner, Cajun Beat, Kela, who had beaten Pico Central earlier in the year, and Midas Eyes, the narrow favorite off a win in the Forego Stakes.[22] Speightstown broke poorly but then established good position on the rail. Abbondanza took the early lead and ran a very fast opening quarter of :21.23, while the opening half went in :43.47. As the field entered the stretch, Speightstown took advantage of a small hole and went to the front, along with Gold Storm on the outside. The two briefly dueled before Speightstown pulled away, finishing the six furlongs in 1:08.11. The late-running Kela closed from the far outside to finish second. "He didn't break as well as I wanted to, but I took a little bit of a hold to get a good position", said Velazquez. "I had to take advantage of the inside. I had to take advantage when the hole was there."[25]

In the voting for the Eclipse Award for Champion Sprinter, Speightstown beat Pico Central by 157 votes to 101. Speightstown's win in the Breeders' Cup Sprint on racing's biggest day was likely decisive. Said Pletcher, "I have the utmost respect for Pico Central. But both horses had blemishes on their records. The thing is, I never felt like the Vosburgh was a fair indication of what our horse was all about. He stumbled coming out of there, and the track was not what we expected it to be. It was deep, cuppy, tiring. And, taking nothing away from Voodoo, but when Voodoo [a rank outsider] beat us, we felt our horse just didn't run his race. We threw that race out, regrouped, went on to the Breeders' Cup at a neutral and fair track, and won what we consider to be the biggest sprint race of the year."[26]

Notable offspring include:[2][3][33][34][36][37]

c = colt, f = filly, g = gelding

Others include:

• Munnings (2006) – three time Grade II winner, sire of multiple G1 winners
• Essence Hit Man (2007) – 2011 and 2012 Champion Male Sprinter in Canada, set track record for 6 furlongs at Woodbine on Polytrack
• Bridgetown (2007) – Summer Stakes, set a new course record for 5½ furlongs at Monmouth Park
• Delegation (2009) – stakes winner, set track record for 1 1/4 miles on Woodbine's Polytrack

^† Prior to 2015, the Leading Sire Lists published by The Blood-Horse excluded earnings from Hong Kong and Japan due to the disparity in purses. Starting in 2015, earnings from Hong Kong and Japan are included on an adjusted basis.[39]

Speightstown has suffered at least three bouts of colic: in December 2004,[40] April 2010[41] and November 2012.[42] He has recovered well despite requiring minor surgery.