Maryland Racing Commission to review Secretariat's Preakness time

Maryland Racing Commission to review Secretariat's

Preakness time

Penny Chenery, the owner of Secretariat, and Maryland Jockey Club President

Thomas Chuckas have requested that the Maryland Racing Commission conduct a

hearing to consider "compelling" evidence, based upon advances in modern video

technology, regarding the long-standing controversy surrounding Secretariat's

winning time in the 1973 Preakness Stakes. The Commission has agreed to do so

and it will consider the request at its upcoming meeting on June 19th at Laurel

Park.

The electronic timer in use at Pimlico for the 1973 Preakness recorded a

winning time of 1:55 -- a clocking that quickly became the source of controversy

after two independent clockers from the Daily Racing Form had

individually hand-timed the race at a much faster 1:53 2/5. In the days

following the 1973 Preakness, the stewards at Pimlico, and later the Commission,

concluded that there were "extenuating circumstances" attendant to the

electronic timer's recording. As a result, the official time was subsequently

changed to that reported by Pimlico's official hand clocker -- 1:54 2/5.

Had Secretariat's time been officially recorded as 1:53 2/5 -- the time still

recognized today by the Daily Racing Form -- he would have beaten

Canonero II's track record of 1:54 for the 1 3/16-mile distance, set during the

1971 Preakness Stakes. Instead, the Preakness wound up being the only "jewel" of

Secretariat's three Triple Crown race victories in which he did not establish a

new track record.

"For me, revisiting this dispute on a new day is matter of resolution -- for

historians, for sportswriters and for racing fans," Mrs. Chenery said. "Their

voices are supported by sound evidence, and they deserve to be heard."

The Maryland Jockey Club, which operates Pimlico Race Course, agrees that the

time has come to settle the issue.

"During the last 40 years, video technology has been accepted in other

professional sports as a supportive mechanism for officials to ensure fairness

and accuracy in their decisions," Chuckas said. "It is important for horse

racing and the record books to confirm the correct time in this historical race.

It is the appropriate thing to do."

In later runnings of the second leg of the Triple Crown, Tank's Prospect

(1985), Louis Quatorze (1996) and Curlin (2007) separately established the

current, officially-recognized Preakness Stakes record time of 1:53 2/5. The

track record at Pimlico for 1 3/16 miles is held by Farma Way with a time of

1:52 2/5 when he won the 1991 Pimlico Special.

The June 19 Maryland Racing Commission meeting will be held at Laurel Park

beginning at 1 p.m. (EDT) and is open to the public.

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