50 years later: Secretariat's amazing Belmont performance
Jockey Ron Turcotte, left, aboard Secretariat, turns for a look at the field many lengths behind, June 9, 1973, as they make the final turn on their way to winning the 1973 Triple Crown in the Belmont Stakes race at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. Horse racing has come a long way since it was known as the sport of kings. It no longer captures national attention in the U.S. or worldwide the way it did when horses like Seabiscuit, Man o’ War and Secretariat were racing. Credit: AP/DAVE PICKOFF
It’s not often myth is born out of reality almost instantaneously.
Secretariat’s record-setting Belmont Stakes victory on June 9, 1973, immediately seemed too fantastical. “Big Red” completed his Triple Crown around the 1 1/2-mile track in a blazing 2:24 – a U.S. record at that distance on dirt that still stands – and an astonishing 31 lengths clear in the five-horse field.
Fifty years later, it’s still borderline unbelievable.
“I was amazed at that horse all along,” said Secretariat’s jockey Ron Turcotte, now 81, this week on a National Thoroughbred Racing Association conference call. “He was doing something that you’d never seen before and will probably never see again.”
The 50th anniversary of Secretariat’s stunning victory will be celebrated during Saturday’s 155th Belmont Stakes. That will include Turcotte’s Triple Crown saddle being on display at the track.
Turcotte provided the iconic race’s most lasting image when he peeked behind him in the final stretch to see where the other horses were. Secretariat’s lead at that point was 25 lengths.
No horse has yet to come closer than two seconds to Secretariat’s winning time.
“I think anyone that leans into any of the historic value of the industry and everything he was – he was just an amazing individual – we’re very lucky to have a horse like that in the modern era that was so well documented and spoken about and adored,” said trainer Jena Antonucci, who will saddle 8-1 Arcangelo in this year’s Belmont. “I think it helps a lot appreciating who he was and what he was in the game.”
“It’s the one race that everyone has seen hundreds of times, probably even if you’re not a real horse racing fan,” said trainer Todd Pletcher, going for his fourth Belmont victory with 5-2 Forte and 3-1 Tapit Trice. “It’s an epic moment in sports history.”
Secretariat’s victory and legacy will also play a part in Fox Sports’ coverage of Saturday’s race as that network makes its debut broadcasting the event. That will include an interview with Turcotte.
“In baseball, we still talk about Babe Ruth and that was 100 years ago,” said Curt Menefee, who will host Fox’s coverage of the Belmont. “So when you get an icon that the general public can identify with, especially as you try to continue to grow a sport, I think it’s always great to go back and remind people of what that horse did.
“But not only what he did, but why it was special. You get generations that have grown up and they’ve heard of Secretariat. ‘OK, it was a horse that won. But what made him different than any other horse?’ So that story has to continually be told. Also, over the years, why has no other horse been able to capture what he did? You look at all other sports, records are broken all the time. This one, 50 years later, still stands.”
Fifty years later, Turcotte remembers Secretariat’s triumph with vivid clarity. He remembers glancing at the clock and realizing Secretariat’s blazing pace. He can describe exactly when and why he turned to survey where the rest of the field was.
And he can tell you about the crowd that filled Belmont’s cavernous grandstand.
“As I turned for home, I could see the crowd,” Turcotte said. “It looked like a wild sea in a bad storm. People were popping up and down, up and down. Once I got closer, I could hear a lot of them cheering me on. At the Preakness, I remember they were jumping on the fence and [Secretariat] never shied from anything.
“It was really a sight to see, all the people jumping up and down.”
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
