Damascus: A Nobly Named Champion

Damascus powered clear to win the 1967 Belmont Stakes. (Photo by Horsephotos.com)
It's been said no horse could finish on the far turn quite the way Damascus did. With an explosive turn of foot, he pounced on his rivals like a cat on its prey.
Known for his toughness, versatility and durability, Damascus’ accomplishments — especially his 3-year-old season in which he scored 12 wins from 16 starts — were superb in a decade full of remarkable racehorses. He retired with 21 victories in 32 starts, finishing out of the money only once and that was his last race, which produced a career-ending injury. He would go on to a stellar career at stud.
Damascus came into the world on April 14, 1964 at John Bell III’s Jonabell Farm. His owner and breeder was Edith Woodward Bancroft, the daughter of the late William Woodward Sr., patriarch of one of America’s great racing dynasties and the breeder (Maryland's Belair Stud) of 96 stakes winners in America and Europe. The famous white silks with the cherry red dots had been carried to victory by Triple Crown winners Gallant Fox and Omaha as well as champions Nashua, Granville, Vagrancy, and Happy Gal.
Sired by 1959 Horse of the Year Sword Dancer out of Kerala, by My Babu, Damascus was given a name laced with religious symbolism — a reference to Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus.
A handsome chestnut, Sword Dancer was only 15.3 hands, but he had buckets of heart and toughness. A late-developer as a 2-year-old, Sword Dancer tore up the track at three when he was crowned Horse of the Year.
Placed in the care of patient horseman Frank Whiteley Jr., as a 2-year old colt Damascus was growing into a strong bay with touches of black — a coat color the Irish have longed prized, a classic horse. When Damascus trained he lowered his head and shoulders, which made him appear smaller than his 16 hands. His best performance in 1966 was the Remsen Stakes with Hall of Fame rider Willie Shoemaker aboard.
“He showed me guts in the Remsen,” Shoemaker remarked. “We were slammed against the rail — and that would be enough to take the starch out of some horses — but he recovered and came on to win. I made a couple of runs with him, and he didn't fail me. Most horses don't want to make more than one run.”
In early April 1967, a crowd of 50,222 turned out at Aqueduct for the Gotham Stakes to see the first confrontation between Damascus and Dr. Fager. Racing together, the pair drew clear of the field down the stretch with Dr. Fager edging away to win by a half-length in 1:35 1/5. Shoemaker took the blame for the defeat, saying he stayed too close to the pace and then gave up position.
A couple of weeks later, Damascus stormed down the stretch to win by six easy lengths in the Wood Memorial Stakes. As the 8-5 favorite in the Kentucky Derby, Damascus was a bundle of nerves in paddock, sweating profusely. He was rank early, hemmed in along the rail and faded midway in the stretch, finishing third to 30-1 longshot Clarion.
Whitely shipped Damascus to his home base, Laurel Racetrack, the week before the Preakness. In an effort to calm down his colt, Whitely teamed up Damascus with a stable pony named Duffy. It worked. The star of Belair Stud was all business when the gates opened at the Preakness. He broke like a bullet to grab the lead, maintained a high-cruising speed and repelled four challengers in the stretch to come home the winner.
1967 PREAKNESS

In the Belmont, Damascus was the 4-5 favorite in a nine-horse field and scored a 2 ½-length victory in 2:28 4/5. It was the seventh win in the historic race for Belair Stud.
It was a magical summer ("Summer of Love") as Damascus captured the Leonard Richards Handicap, the Dwyer Handicap, and the American Derby. Showcasing his trademark explosive move on the far turn, he won the American Derby easily. His time of 1:46 4/5 for the 1 1/8 miles was a new track record.
At Saratoga, the Travers Stakes set up perfectly for Damascus. Trailing by 15 lengths at the five-eighths pole, Shoemaker soon found himself six lengths in front by the time he reached the quarter-pole. Damascus galloped home a 22-length winner, equaling the track record of 2:01 3/5 for 1 ¼ miles. It ranks as one of the most dominating performances of all-time.
1967 TRAVERS FEATURE

Next up, the $107,800, 1 ¼-mile Woodward Stakes, or as racing fans dubbed it, the "Race of the Century." A crowd of 55,259 turned up at Aqueduct to witness three of the sport's all-time greats — 4-year old Buckpasser, along with Dr. Fager and Damascus — do battle.
However, Whitely drew the ire of the Dr. Fager camp when he ran Hedevar as a rabbit. The speedball Hedevar did his job, battling Dr. Fager down the backstretch as they flew through the opening three quarters of a mile in a stunning 1:09 1/5. In the stretch, Damascus dispatched a tiring Dr. Fager and coasted home to a 10-length victory over Buckpasser, with archrival Dr. Fager third.
Whitely, who trained greats such as Tom Rolfe, Ruffian and Forego, ranked the race as his favorite victory. Shoemaker had his own lofty praise.
“This colt gets better all the time, and I’ll say it again — though some people don't believe it — Damascus is as good a horse I have ever ridden. That includes the best, such as Swaps, Kelso, Gallant Man and even Buckpasser himself.”
At the time, the Washington D. C. International was roughly the equivalent of Breeders' Cup Turf in its ability to attract the world's finest turf horses as well as its position on the racing calendar.
Although he did not win in 1967, Damascus ran a heroic race, going down by a nose to champion turf horse Fort Marcy as he unleashed a final quarter of the 1 1/2-mile race in 24-seconds flat.
Damascus earned $817,941 that year, a record for a single season, and he was named 1967 Horse of the Year, as well as champion 3-year-old male and co-champion handicap horse. He was ranked third as a grass horse, despite having raced only once on the surface.
As a 4-year-old, Damascus scored three more stakes victories in 1968. He bowed a tendon in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, finishing last of six, the only time in his career he was ever out of the money.
From 32 starts, Damascus won 21 times, was second another seven, and third on three occasions. He amassed $1,176,781 in earnings. He was elected to the Racing Hall of Fame in 1974, just six years after his retirement.
DAMASCUS

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Epilogue
Damascus was retired to Claiborne Farm near Paris, Ky., where he stood his entire stud career. His syndication price of $2,560,000 was a far cry from his dam’s $9,600 yearling price in 1969. Damascus sired 70 stakes winners. He sired champions who went on to produce champions. Of Damascus’ progeny, Bailjumper (1974) became the grandsire of Skip Away (1993) and the broodmare sire of Medaglia d’Oro (1999), sire of 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra.
Another son, Private Account (1976) sired the incomparable Personal Ensign (1984). Damascus also sired the champions Honorable Miss (1970), Highland Blade (1978) and Timeless Moment (1970), among others. Pensioned in 1989, Damascus was a gentle soul in retirement and there was the greatest sense of loss at Claiborne when the grand old stallion laid himself to rest in his paddock at age 31, in 1995.  A horse with a noble name, Damascus more than lived up to it.