Man o' War's only defeat in a 21-start career
His winning streak is at six when undefeated two-year-old Man o' War races in the Sanford Stakes at Saratoga. It is Man o' War's most remembered race -- because it is the only one he would ever lose.
Starting gates are not yet used and horses are led up to a tape barrier. A fill-in starter has difficulty getting the horses ready and they mill around. While Man o' War apparently is backing up, the tape is sprung. Man o' War "was almost left at the post," the Louisville Courier-Journal reports.
After a slow start, Man o' War is third as the field heads for home in the six-furlough race. Blocked by close quarters, he has to go to the outside in the final eighth and though he gamely makes up ground, he misses by a half-length of overtaking the winner, who at 115 pounds carries 15 fewer pounds than the 11-20 favorite.
The winner is named, rather appropriately, Upset.
