Sometimes the sons of the fathers surpass the accomplishments of the father. Such was the case with one of the greatest races horses of all time, the son of Man O’ War, War Admiral, who went on to become racing’s 4th triple crown winner.
War Admiral almost wasn’t the 4th triple crown winner. He was almost the 5th. Owner Samuel Riddle, of Glen Riddle Farms, had many prejudices about horse racing beyond the East coast in 1920. Riddle owned War Admiral’s father, Man O’ War. However, he chose to skip the Kentucky Derby with Man O’ War in 1920 because Churchill Downs was too far west for his tastes. Had he run he most likely would have won and been racing’s second triple crown winner. Fate is sometimes a funny thing.
War Admiral didn’t get off to a blazing start in his career but he did win 3 of his first 6 races. He also had 2 second place finishes and 2 third place finishes. He wasn’t even the leading 2 year old that year. But after he won his first start at age 3, people began to take notice of this horse. That first win as a 3 year old was at the Chesapeake Stakes at Maryland’s Havre de...