American Pharoah

American Pharoah
American Pharoah after winning the 2015 Preakness Stakes
Sire	Pioneerof the Nile
Grandsire	Empire Maker
Dam	Littleprincessemma
Damsire	Yankee Gentleman
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	(2012-02-02) February 2, 2012 (age 12)[1] Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.
Country	United States
Color	Bay
Breeder	Ahmed Zayat
Owner	Ahmed Zayat
Trainer	Bob Baffert
Record	11: 9–1–0[2]
Earnings	US $8,650,300
Major wins
Del Mar Futurity (2014) FrontRunner Stakes (2014) Rebel Stakes (2015) Arkansas Derby (2015) Haskell Invitational (2015) Breeders' Cup wins: Breeders' Cup Classic (2015) Triple Crown race wins: Kentucky Derby (2015) Preakness Stakes (2015) Belmont Stakes (2015)
Awards
12th U.S. Triple Crown Champion (2015) 2nd Grand Slam Champion (2015) American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse (2014) American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Horse (2015) American Horse of the Year (2015)
Honors
NTRA "Moment of the Year" (2015) Secretariat Vox Populi Award (2015) IFHA World's Best Racehorse (2015) American Pharoah Way in Fayette and Woodford counties, Kentucky[3] Statue at Oaklawn Park[4] American Pharoah Stakes at Santa Anita Park United States Racing Hall of Fame (2021)

American Pharoah (foaled February 2, 2012) is a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the American Triple Crown and the Breeders' Cup Classic in 2015. He was the 12th Triple Crown winner in history, and in winning all four races, became the first horse to win the modern Grand Slam of Thoroughbred racing. He won the 2015 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year and 2015 Champion three-year-old. In 2021 he was inducted into the American Racing Hall of Fame. He was bred and owned throughout his racing career by Ahmed Zayat of Zayat Stables, trained by Bob Baffert, and ridden in most of his races by Victor Espinoza.

After finishing fifth in his track debut as a two-year-old, American Pharoah won his next two races, the Grade I Del Mar Futurity and FrontRunner Stakes, each by several lengths. An injury kept him out of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, but the strength of his two wins nonetheless resulted in his being voted American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse at the 2014 Eclipse Awards. Before the 2015 season began, Zayat had sold breeding rights to the colt to the Ashford Stud, a division of Ireland's Coolmore Stud. He retained control over the colt and his racing career, as well as an undisclosed dividend on stud fees.

American Pharoah began his 2015 campaign with wins in the Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby and went on to win the 2015 Kentucky Derby and 2015 Preakness Stakes. He won the Triple Crown in a wire-to-wire victory at the 2015 Belmont Stakes, becoming the first American Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978 and the 12th in history. His winning time was the second-fastest for a Triple Crown winner. He next shipped to Monmouth Park and easily won the Haskell Invitational on August 2.^[5] Three weeks later, he finished a close second in a hard-fought Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course on August 29, 2015, snapping a winning streak of eight races. After a layoff of two months, he shipped to Keeneland for the 2015 Breeders' Cup and ran in the Breeders' Cup Classic, where he challenged older horses for the first time and won by 6+1⁄2 lengths, breaking the track record.

At the conclusion of his 2015 racing year, American Pharoah was retired to stud, per the agreement between Zayat and Ashford. He stands at stud at Ashford Stud in Kentucky.