Kentucky Derby Champions of the 1940s
Roses Winner Pensive Sired 1949 Victor, Ponder; Needles Won in 1956
Apr 22, 2009
Twice in Kentucky Derby history, a three-generation Run for the Roses championship has been established. Pensive and Ponder started in 1944 and 1949, respectively, what Needles would conclude in 1956.
1928 to 1951
- Reigh Count, 1928 KD winner, sired Count Fleet
- Count Fleet, 1943 KD victor, sired Count Turf
- Count Turf, 1951 KD champion
1944 to 1956
- Pensive, 1944 KD victor, sired Ponder
- Ponder, 1949 KD winner, sired Needles
- Needles, 1956 KD champion
1940s Kentucky Derby Winners
- 1940 --- Gallahadion ----- trainer, Roy Waldron; jockey, Carroll Bierman
- 1941 --- Whirlaway ----- Ben A. Jones --- Eddie Arcaro
- 1942 --- Shut Out ----- J.M. Gaver --- Wayne Wright
- 1943 --- Count Fleet ----- G.D. Cameron --- John Longden
- 1944 --- Pensive ----- Ben A. Jones --- Conn McCreary
- 1945 --- Hoop Jr. ----- I.H. Parke --- Eddie Arcaro
- 1946 --- Assault ----- Max Hirsch --- Warren Mehrtens
- 1947 --- Jet Pilot ----- Tom Smith --- Eric Guerin
- 1948 --- Citation ----- Ben A. Jones --- Eddie Arcaro
- 1949 --- Ponder ----- Ben A. Jones --- S. Brooks
Kentucky Derby Tales of the 1940s
In 1949, trainer Ben A. Jones made his usual low-key statement about his Kentucky Derby entry. Ponder, he claimed, had about the same chance as a Shetland pony to win the Kentucky Derby.
Savvy racing columnist Bill Corum wrote that any Derby colt Jones nay-sayed was worth betting on. Jones, Corum reminded, had once said that he only entered a horse in the Derby unless he thought he could win because running second in the classic wasn't worth the risk of ruining a three-year-old colt in the 1-1/4 miles distance the race demanded.
Against thirteen rivals, Ponder closed well, dropped back late, then exploded for a three-length victory. The week before, Ponder had won the Derby Trial.
Whirlaway Defies Logic
In 1941, trainer Jones had been frustrated by a colt named Whirlaway. The Blenheim II son liked to sprint to the outside rail and had a habit of never re-gearing to his maximum speed, which was considerable, if he slowed down for any reason in a race.
Stars of the Milky Way Stable sent Gallahadion to the 1940 Derby decked out in bright orange, chocolate, and bright white, colors that earned the colt a nickname from an admiring fan, "delicious".
Shut Out, the 1942 Derby champion, was the last son of the great Equipoise, a standard bearer of the racing Thoroughbred.
Freddy Hooper bought his first Thoroughbred in 1943, a Sir Gallahad III yearling he named Hoop Jr.
Assault was crippled as a foal, but as a racer, he ran fluidly to the 1946 KD title -- by eight lengths.
Jet Pilot was trainer Tom Smith's only Kentucky Derby champion.
The greatest of the heralded KD champions of the 1940s, four of whom were Triple Crown champions as well, was Citation. "...so fast he scared me," said the great Eddie Arcaro. Many consider Citation the best Thoroughbred who ever raced.
Derby Stories Resources: The Blood-Horse magazine and Two Minutes to Glory -- The Official History of the Kentucky Derby, In Cooperation with Churchill Downs, Inc., 2007, by Pamela Brodowsky and Tom Philbin; HarperCollins Publishers, New York.
