FEATURE
A CENTURY OF PHAR LAP
Australian racing has seen champions come and go in the last century, yet Phar Lap still stands above them all.
WORDS JOE MCGRATH
O n the 28th of October, 1926, a scrawny, nondescript chestnut colt was born in a tent outside Timaru, New Zealand, at Seadown Stud. He was bred by Alick Roberts, who owned the stud and stood the stallion Night Raid, a modestly performing son of Radium who traced back to Carbine on his dam’s side. By Night Raid out of Entreaty, the new colt was described as tall, lean, and common or plain. By the time he was presented for sale 15 months later, he had warts dotted across his face. None of which would attract the most optimistic of purchasers. He was sold as Lot 41 at the 1928 Trentham Sales, Wellington, to Hugh Telford for 160 Guineas, acting on behalf of his brother, Harry, a battling horse trainer from Sydney. But as famous as this was at the beginning of Phar Lap’s story, it was merely an appetiser for what was to become one of the greatest rags-to-riches stories in Australian sport. Maybe therein lies the reason for his greatness. Here’s a horse with a nondescript pedigree, nothing to suggest he would be capable of taking on the blue bloods of the turf. But he did, and he won – often. At one point, 36 from 41 starts. This year marks the 100th anniversary of his birth, and he remains the benchmark for greatness in Australian racing. His legend continues to permeate the Australian vernacular when someone is said to have ‘a heart as big as Phar Lap’.
A unique compliment reflecting the values of a champion who, anatomically, had a heart one and a half times the size of a normal horse. 6.35 kg, to be exact. But while size was one thing, and he did stand at 17.1 hands high, it was his sheer brilliance and determination that set him apart from all others. But 100 years on, one must ask: is Phar Lap still the greatest horse to race in Australia? With the emergence of trailblazers such as Makybe Diva, Black Caviar and Winx in recent years, has his story been somewhat surpassed by the current generation of superstars? Well, the simple answer to that is ‘no’. He’s still the best and arguably the most significant racehorse this country has seen. Bred in New Zealand and purchased by an Australian for an American owner, David Davis, his story is embedded in the Australian psyche. What Bradman is to cricket, Phar Lap is to Australian horse racing. But maybe it’s the circumstances surrounding his achievements that enhance the legend, away from the raw statistics. For the record, he won 37 races from a career total of 51 race starts, for £66,738. After being unplaced in his first four starts, he broke his maiden at Rosehill in a six- furlong Maiden Handicap. In a somewhat misquoted remark, his jockey on that day, Jack Baker, would be recorded forever as saying, ‘He might be alright. He goes well, but I don’t think he’ll stay.’
22 | 2026 OFFICIAL SOUVENIR MAGAZINE
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software