Todd Pletcher
Encyclopedia
Todd Pletcher is a leading American thoroughbred horse trainer
. He has won four consecutive Eclipse Award
s as outstanding Trainer of the Year, while topping the leader board in purse earnings in 2004, 2005, and 2006. His horse Super Saver
won the 2010 Kentucky Derby
, the first of his 24 horses entered in his career to win the Run for the Roses. He also won the 2007 Belmont Stakes
with filly Rags to Riches
.
at Hollywood Park and Del Mar Racetrack
s.
He graduated from James Madison High School in San Antonio, TX in 1985 and began college at the University of Arizona
in their Race Track Industry Program in the fall of that year. Between his sophomore and junior years he worked as a groom for D. Wayne Lukas
at Arlington Park
near Chicago
. He spent the following summer with another legendary Hall of Fame trainer, Charlie Whittingham, working as a groom at Hollywood Park. While attending University of Arizona, Pletcher was an active member of Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity.
He graduated from college with a Bachelor of Animal Science
in May 1989 and traveled to New York immediately following graduation to work for Lukas as a foreman in the active stable.
In 1991 he was promoted to assistant trainer for Lukas, splitting his time between New York and Florida. Pletcher was Lukas's East Coast Assistant until the end of 1995 where he was instrumental in the development of such great horses as Thunder Gulch
, Harlan, Serena's Song
, A Wild Ride, and Flanders. He took out his trainer's license in December 1995 and saddled his first winner, Majestic Number, in February 1996 at Gulfstream Park
in Florida
.
In 2004 he got his big break and he trained three-year-old filly Ashado
to a win in the Kentucky Oaks
at Churchill Downs
in Louisville
. Later that year Ashado won the Breeders' Cup Distaff
. The filly went on to capture the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Three-Year-Old of the year in 2004 and as Best Older Female in 2005. Her stablemate, Speightstown, gave Pletcher a second Breeders’ Cup win in 2004 in the Sprint division as well as a second Eclipse award when he was named Outstanding Sprint Horse that same year.
In 2005, Pletcher set a single season earnings record with purse earnings totaling $20,867,842 with trips to the winner's circle in ten Grade 1 races, including the Travers Stakes
at Saratoga
with Flower Alley and the Blue Grass Stakes
at Keeneland Race Course with Bandini.
Pletcher broke his own single-season earnings record on October 7, 2006, when Fleet Indian captured a win in the Beldame Stakes at Belmont Park
. That win proved to be a first in a day of multiple winners for Pletcher as Honey Ryder won the Flower Bowl Invitational, English Channel won the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational Stakes, and India won the Fitz Dixon Cotillion Breeders' Cup Handicap
at Philadelphia Park. His purse earnings total $27,670,243.
Later that year, He broke the 19-year-old North American record for most stakes wins in a year, on October 14, when the two-year-old colt Scat Daddy won the $400,000 Champagne Stakes at Belmont Park, making it the 93rd stakes victory of the year for Pletcher. The record was set by his former boss and mentor D. Wayne Lukas
in 1987. Pletcher's 93 stakes wins include 52 graded events and a career-best 17 Grade 1 wins.
Pletcher's season included a win with Bluegrass Cat
in the $1,000,000 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park following the colt's second-place finishes in the Kentucky Derby
and Belmont Stakes
.
In the 2007 Belmont Stakes
, Pletcher earned his first win in a Triple Crown race when Rags to Riches
became the first filly to win since 1905.
After missing the winner's circle with 24 previous entries, Pletcher finally won his first Kentucky Derby
on May 1, 2010 with Super Saver
, the 8-1 second choice, with jockey Calvin Borel
aboard.
) and Woody Stevens (for outstanding trainer) Awards from the New York Turf Writers Association.
Horse trainer
In horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...
. He has won four consecutive Eclipse Award
Eclipse Award
The Eclipse Award is an American thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. The Eclipse Awards, honoring the champions of the sport, are sponsored by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association , Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers...
s as outstanding Trainer of the Year, while topping the leader board in purse earnings in 2004, 2005, and 2006. His horse Super Saver
Super Saver (horse)
Super Saver is a retired American Thoroughbred race horse, best known as the winner of the 2010 Kentucky Derby.-Pedigree:Super Saver's ancestors include damsire A.P. Indy, winner of the 1992 Belmont Stakes, 1957 Preakness Stakes winner Bold Ruler, 1964 Kentucky Derby winner Northern Dancer, and...
won the 2010 Kentucky Derby
2010 Kentucky Derby
The 2010 Kentucky Derby was the 136th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 1, 2010, and was televised in the United States on the NBC television network. The post time was EDT . The stakes of the race were US$2,185,200...
, the first of his 24 horses entered in his career to win the Run for the Roses. He also won the 2007 Belmont Stakes
2007 Belmont Stakes
The 2007 Belmont Stakes was the 139th running of the Belmont Stakes. The race was held on June 9, 2007. Rags to Riches won the race by a head over Curlin before a crowd of 46,870, becoming the first filly to win the Belmont since 1905 and to win a Triple Crown race since the 1988 Kentucky...
with filly Rags to Riches
Rags to Riches (horse)
Rags to Riches is an American thoroughbred filly racehorse who in 2007 became the first filly to win the Belmont Stakes in over a century. She was sired by 1992 U.S. Horse of the Year and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee A.P. Indy, who in turn was a son of 1977 U.S...
.
Career
Todd began working for his father, Jake Pletcher, as a hot walker at the age of seven. During his summers off from junior and senior high school he went to California where he worked as a hot walker for Henry MorenoHenry Moreno
Henry Moreno was a Thoroughbred horse racing jockey.Moreno's most important win for Harry F. Guggenheim's stable came in the 1953 Kentucky Derby when he rode Dark Star to victory over future the Hall of Fame colt, Native Dancer....
at Hollywood Park and Del Mar Racetrack
Del Mar Racetrack
Del Mar Racetrack is an American Thoroughbred horse racing track at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in the seaside city of Del Mar, California, 20 miles north of San Diego. Operated by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, it is known for the slogan: "Where The Turf Meets The Surf." It was built by a partnership...
s.
He graduated from James Madison High School in San Antonio, TX in 1985 and began college at the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
in their Race Track Industry Program in the fall of that year. Between his sophomore and junior years he worked as a groom for D. Wayne Lukas
D. Wayne Lukas
Darrell Wayne Lukas is a former educator who became one of the most successful horse trainers in American Thoroughbred horse racing history and a U.S...
at Arlington Park
Arlington Park
Arlington Park is a horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Horse racing in the Chicago region has been a popular sport since the early days of the city in the 1830s, and at one time Chicago had more horse racing tracks than any other major metropolitan area...
near Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. He spent the following summer with another legendary Hall of Fame trainer, Charlie Whittingham, working as a groom at Hollywood Park. While attending University of Arizona, Pletcher was an active member of Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity.
He graduated from college with a Bachelor of Animal Science
Animal science
Animal Science is described as "studying the biology of animals that are under the control of mankind". Historically, the animals studied were farm animals, including livestock and horses, but courses available now look at a far broader area to include companion animals, for example dogs, cats and...
in May 1989 and traveled to New York immediately following graduation to work for Lukas as a foreman in the active stable.
In 1991 he was promoted to assistant trainer for Lukas, splitting his time between New York and Florida. Pletcher was Lukas's East Coast Assistant until the end of 1995 where he was instrumental in the development of such great horses as Thunder Gulch
Thunder Gulch
Thunder Gulch is a Champion American thoroughbred racehorse who left the starting gate at 25-1 odds in 1995 and went on to win the Kentucky Derby in 2:01.2 from post 16. He was ridden by jockey Gary Stevens. D...
, Harlan, Serena's Song
Serena's Song
Serena’s Song is an American Thoroughbred race horse. She won 17 graded stakes races, including 11 Grade I , in three seasons for $3,286,388 in earnings....
, A Wild Ride, and Flanders. He took out his trainer's license in December 1995 and saddled his first winner, Majestic Number, in February 1996 at Gulfstream Park
Gulfstream Park
Gulfstream Park Racing & Casino is a racetrack and county-approved racino in Hallandale Beach, Florida, in the United States. During its annual meet, which spans December through April, it is one of the most important venues for horse racing in America....
in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.
In 2004 he got his big break and he trained three-year-old filly Ashado
Ashado
Ashado is American Thoroughbred mare racehorse. Highly successful in racing, she is a two-time Eclipse Award winner. At the end of the 2005 racing season her owner group, which included trainer Todd Pletcher, Paul Saylor, Johns Martin, and Mr. & Mrs...
to a win in the Kentucky Oaks
Kentucky Oaks
The Kentucky Oaks is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies staged annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. The race currently covers 1⅛ miles at Churchill Downs; the horses carry 121 pounds . The Kentucky Oaks is held on the Friday before the Kentucky Derby each year...
at Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs
Churchill Downs, located in Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby annually. It officially opened in 1875, and held the first Kentucky Derby and the first Kentucky Oaks in the same year. Churchill Downs...
in Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. Later that year Ashado won the Breeders' Cup Distaff
Breeders' Cup Distaff
The Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, 3 years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Distaff from its inception in 1984 through 2007, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders'...
. The filly went on to capture the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Three-Year-Old of the year in 2004 and as Best Older Female in 2005. Her stablemate, Speightstown, gave Pletcher a second Breeders’ Cup win in 2004 in the Sprint division as well as a second Eclipse award when he was named Outstanding Sprint Horse that same year.
In 2005, Pletcher set a single season earnings record with purse earnings totaling $20,867,842 with trips to the winner's circle in ten Grade 1 races, including the Travers Stakes
Travers Stakes
The Travers Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York.First held in 1864, it was named for William R. Travers, the president of the old Saratoga Racing Association. His horse, Kentucky, won the first running of the Travers...
at Saratoga
Saratoga Race Course
Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. It opened on August 3, 1863, and is the oldest organized sporting venue of any kind in the United States. It is typically open for racing from late July through early September.-History:John...
with Flower Alley and the Blue Grass Stakes
Blue Grass Stakes
The Toyota Blue Grass Stakes, currently sponsored by the Toyota Motor Corporation, is an American Grade 1 horse race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually in mid April at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky....
at Keeneland Race Course with Bandini.
Pletcher broke his own single-season earnings record on October 7, 2006, when Fleet Indian captured a win in the Beldame Stakes at Belmont Park
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in Elmont in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, on Long Island adjoining New York City. It first opened on May 4, 1905...
. That win proved to be a first in a day of multiple winners for Pletcher as Honey Ryder won the Flower Bowl Invitational, English Channel won the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational Stakes, and India won the Fitz Dixon Cotillion Breeders' Cup Handicap
Cotillion Handicap
The F. Eugene Dixon, Jr. Cotillion Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Parx Racing and Casino in Bensalem, Pennsylvania. Since 2010, it has been raced on the first Saturday in October as a prelude to the annual Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships...
at Philadelphia Park. His purse earnings total $27,670,243.
Later that year, He broke the 19-year-old North American record for most stakes wins in a year, on October 14, when the two-year-old colt Scat Daddy won the $400,000 Champagne Stakes at Belmont Park, making it the 93rd stakes victory of the year for Pletcher. The record was set by his former boss and mentor D. Wayne Lukas
D. Wayne Lukas
Darrell Wayne Lukas is a former educator who became one of the most successful horse trainers in American Thoroughbred horse racing history and a U.S...
in 1987. Pletcher's 93 stakes wins include 52 graded events and a career-best 17 Grade 1 wins.
Pletcher's season included a win with Bluegrass Cat
Bluegrass Cat
Bluegrass Cat is a thoroughbred race horse. Foaled on January 23, 2003, he was a contender for the Triple Crown in 2006. However, he came up just short in the Kentucky Derby, finishing in second place, 6.5 lengths behind Barbaro.-Connections:...
in the $1,000,000 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park following the colt's second-place finishes in the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
and Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes
The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
.
In the 2007 Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes
The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
, Pletcher earned his first win in a Triple Crown race when Rags to Riches
Rags to Riches (horse)
Rags to Riches is an American thoroughbred filly racehorse who in 2007 became the first filly to win the Belmont Stakes in over a century. She was sired by 1992 U.S. Horse of the Year and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee A.P. Indy, who in turn was a son of 1977 U.S...
became the first filly to win since 1905.
After missing the winner's circle with 24 previous entries, Pletcher finally won his first Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
on May 1, 2010 with Super Saver
Super Saver (horse)
Super Saver is a retired American Thoroughbred race horse, best known as the winner of the 2010 Kentucky Derby.-Pedigree:Super Saver's ancestors include damsire A.P. Indy, winner of the 1992 Belmont Stakes, 1957 Preakness Stakes winner Bold Ruler, 1964 Kentucky Derby winner Northern Dancer, and...
, the 8-1 second choice, with jockey Calvin Borel
Calvin Borel
Calvin H. Borel is an American jockey in thoroughbred horse racing and rode the victorious mount in the 2007 Kentucky Derby, the 2009 Kentucky Derby and the 2010 Kentucky Derby...
aboard.
Honours
Pletcher has amassed numerous training titles in New York, Kentucky and Florida, including five consecutive titles at the prestigious Saratoga Race Track summer meet. He has received several Fourstar Dave (for Special Achievement at Saratoga Race CourseSaratoga Race Course
Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. It opened on August 3, 1863, and is the oldest organized sporting venue of any kind in the United States. It is typically open for racing from late July through early September.-History:John...
) and Woody Stevens (for outstanding trainer) Awards from the New York Turf Writers Association.