Dr. Fager

Dr. Fager
Sire	Rough'n Tumble
Grandsire	Free For All
Dam	Aspidistra
Damsire	Better Self
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	1964
Country	United States
Breeder	Tartan Farm
Owner	Tartan Stable. Racing silks: Red, tartan sash, red and tartan cap.
Trainer	John A. Nerud
Record	22:18-2-1
Earnings	$1,002,642
Major wins
Cowdin Stakes (1966) Gotham Stakes (1967) Arlington Classic (1967) Vosburgh Stakes (1967, 1968) Suburban Handicap (1968) Californian Stakes (1968) Roseben Handicap (1968) United Nations Handicap (1968)
Awards
American Champion Sprint Horse (1967, 1968) American Co-Champion Male Turf Horse (1968) American Champion Older Male Horse (1968) American Horse of the Year (1968) Leading sire in North America (1977)
Horse (Equus ferus caballus)

Dr. Fager (1964-1976) was an American a thoroughbred racehorse who had what many consider one of the greatest single racing seasons by any horse in the history of the sport. He was the only horse who ever held four titles in one year, 1968, when he was named the Horse of the Year, champion handicap horse, champion sprinter, and co-champion grass horse.

Background

A bay colt by Rough'n Tumble, Dr. Fager was bred by his owner, the Tartan Stable of William L. McKnight (chairman of the board of Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co.). His half-sister is another Hall of Famer, Ta Wee. Trained by Hall of Famer John Nerud, he was named for the Boston brain surgeon Dr. Charles Fager, who saved Nerud's life with two operations after Nerud suffered a serious fall from his pony.

Racing career

Dr. Fager raced 22 times, winning 18 races, with two places and one show. His only out-of-the-money finish was as a result of a disqualification in the Jersey Derby, in which he finished first. Only three horses ever finished in front of Dr. Fager: Champion juvenile Successor, Horse of the Year Damascus, and Horse of the Year Buckpasser.

Dr. Fager set the world record at 1 mile on any surface: 1:32 1/5, achieved on August 24, 1968 when he ran in the Washington Park Handicap at Arlington Park under 134 pounds. The record still stands for dirt surface racing. The list of stakes and handicaps he won includes the Gotham Stakes, the Withers Stakes, the Jersey Derby, the AP Classic, the Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap, the Vosburgh Stakes, the Roseben, the Californian Stakes, the Suburban Handicap, the Brooklyn Handicap, the Whitney Handicap, and the United Nations Handicap. Dr. Fager's career is recorded in "Champions, The Lives, Times, and Past Performances of the 20th Century's Greatest Thoroughbreds" by the editors and writers of the Daily Racing Form.

Dr. Fager was known for his duels with Damascus at Aqueduct Racetrack. Damascus' connections took to entering a "rabbit" to engage Dr. Fager in a speed duel, knowing that Dr. Fager could not be rated by his jockey. In four meetings between the two Hall of Famers, Damascus took two races (both times using the "rabbit" strategy) and Dr. Fager took two.

Assessment, Honors and Awards

In The Blood-Horse magazine's list of the top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20th Century, Dr. Fager ranks sixth. In 1971, three years after he left the track, he was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, New York.

Stud career

Dr. Fager went to stud at his owner's Tartan Farm near Ocala, Florida, where he stood for eight years before his death at age 12 on August 5, 1976. Named leading sire in 1971, Dr. Fager sired 1975 American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly, Dearly Precious, Tree of Knowledge, and L'Alezane. Death was attributed to a colon obstruction. He was buried at Tartan Farm, now known as Winding Oaks Farm.

References

• Good article on the Good Doctor
• The Ultimate Horse Dictionary