The anonymous bidder who recently purchased the gold winner's trophy earned by Majestic Prince in the 1969 Kentucky Derby has come forward and has announced plans to bring the rare trophy home to Kentucky.
Louisville, Kentucky-based Internet company Secretariat.com made a winning bid of $60,000 to purchase the trophy at the Doyle Auction in New York on July 20. Secretariat.com is operated in conjunction with Mrs. Penny Chenery, who owned Secretariat, the legendary winner of the 1973 Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown. Established in 2002, Secretariat.com serves as the horse's official Web site and chronicles the career of the racing legend known to his countless fans as "Big Red."
The purchase of the 1969 Kentucky Derby trophy marks the first public transfer of ownership of a Derby winner's trophy since the 1937 trophy won by Triple Crown winner War Admiral was sold by the estate of owner Sam Riddle. Leonard Lusky, president of Secretariat.com, made the winning bid via telephone following a joint decision with Chenery to enter the bidding. In an ironic touch, the under bidder for the trophy turned out to be the Kentucky Derby Museum, which possesses one of the nation's largest collection of Derby trophies.
Lusky said that Secretariat.com purchased the trophy to ensure that it would be publicly displayed and utilized to promote Thoroughbred racing and the Kentucky Derby Museum would be the first to benefit from that goal. The new owner will loan the trophy to the museum, where it will be the centerpiece of a Kentucky Derby Museum exhibit on that historic running of the famed "Run for the Roses." The exhibit on the Derby victory by Majestic Prince is scheduled to open on Aug. 22.
"The purchase of this trophy fits squarely within a primary goal of our company, which is to celebrate Thoroughbred racing's past as a means to preserve its future," said Lusky. "Mrs. Chenery and I felt that the purchase and the public showing of the trophy would be a wonderful way to increase interest and enthusiasm for the sport."
The exhibit that will feature the 1969 Derby trophy is also scheduled to include the silks worn by jockey Bill Hartack, who earned a record-tying fifth Kentucky Derby victory aboard Majestic Prince, and other memorabilia from the 95th running of the Kentucky Derby.
That renewal of the Kentucky Derby was notable for much more than Hartack's record. Majestic Prince was one of the rare unbeaten horses to win America's greatest race and the victory gave trainer Johnny Longden the distinction of being the only person in history to train and ride a Derby winner. In his previous career as a "Hall of Fame" jockey, Longden had guided 1943 Triple Crown winner Count Fleet to victory in the Derby. At the time, the chestnut colt made history as the most expensive horse to win the Derby as Canadian industrialist Frank McMahon had purchased the son of Raise A Native for a then-record $250,000 at the 1967 Keeneland July Selected Yearling Sale.
Majestic Prince also won the Preakness and entered the Belmont Stakes with the opportunity to become the first unbeaten winner of the Triple Crown, but that bid ended in a runner-up finish to Rokeby Stable's Arts and Letters, who had finished second in both the Derby and the Preakness and would go to earn "Horse of the Year" honors at the end of that racing season. The Belmont also proved to be the final race for Majestic Prince, who finished his career with a record of 9-1-0 in 10 races and earned $414,200.
Following his racing career, Majestic Prince launched a breeding career at Spendthrift Farm, the Lexington, KY, farm where he was bred and raised. Spendthrift owner Leslie Combs II had been so thrilled to breed a Derby winner that he commissioned a duplicate gold Derby trophy for himself that featured his name as the breeder of record. The Combs trophy is already in the collection at the Kentucky Derby Museum and will also be part of the exhibit on the 1969 Derby.
"We were concerned that the 1969 Derby trophy might become part of someone's private collection and, although we were disappointed that our bid fell just short, we were pleased to learn the identity of the winning bidder," said Lynn Ashton, executive director of the Kentucky Derby Museum. "We have worked with Mrs. Chenery and Leonard on many occasions and are pleased to continue that relationship as we combine our resources to present the exhibited built around the trophy won by Majestic Prince."
The Provident Loan Society consigned the14-karat, solid gold trophy to the Doyle Auction. Its pre-auction value was listed at $15,000 to $20,000 based solely on the 50 ounces of gold used to make the trophy. Churchill Downs currently lists the estimated value of a Derby winner's trophy at $90,000, although an individual trophy could be worth more as an artifact.
