Ben's Cat

Ben's Cat
Ben's Cat winning the 2016 Jim McKay Turf Sprint in a photo finish
Sire	Parker's Storm Cat
Grandsire	Storm Cat
Dam	Twofox
Damsire	Thirty Eight Paces
Sex	Gelding
Foaled	(2006-04-17) April 17, 2006
Country	United States
Colour	Dark bay
Breeder	K. T. Leatherbury Associates Inc.
Owner	The Jim Stable
Trainer	King T. Leatherbury
Record	57: 32-9-6
Earnings	$2,629,782[1]
Major wins
Mister Diz Stakes (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015) Maryland Million Turf Sprint Handicap (2010, 2011, 2012) Jim McKay Turf Sprint (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016) Turf Monster Handicap (2011, 2012) Fabulous Strike Handicap (2012, 2013, 2014) Parx Dash Handicap (2012, 2013, 2014)

Ben's Cat (foaled April 17, 2006 in Maryland) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who has won multiple stakes races, including six victories in the Mister Diz Stakes and five in the Jim McKay Turf Sprint. He is a four-time Maryland-bred horse of the year.

Background

Ben's Cat was bred by King T. Leatherbury, who is also the nearly black gelding's owner and trainer. Ben's Cat is by Parker's Storm Cat, whose only win was a five-furlong sprint on the turf. Parker's Storm Cat was well bred however, being by leading sire Storm Cat. Ben's Cat's dam, Twofox, was a stakes-placed mare by Thirty Eight Paces,^[2] a stakes winning stallion also trained by Leatherbury.^[3]

Although Leatherbury is one of the winningest trainers in American racing history, his stable had shrunk to just fourteen horses by the time Ben's Cat came along. In part because of Ben's Cat success, Leatherbury was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015 at the age of 82.^[4]

Racing Career

Ben's Cat suffered a broken pelvis at age two and spent nearly a year recovering, not making his first start until age four. On May 8, 2010, Ben's Cat won in his first start at Pimlico racetrack in a maiden claiming race, where he could have been purchased for $20,000. He won his second start on June 14 at Delaware Park, where he could have been claimed for $25,000. "Each time he ran, he got better," said Leatherbury. "I'm lucky I didn't lose him in that second claimer. Looking back now, I'd be sick if I had lost him."^[5]

Ben's Cat then went on a win streak, including his first stakes win on August 21 in the Mister Diz at Laurel Park. He gained a reputation as a talented "freak"^[5] who specialized in photo finish victories.^[6] On October 2, he won the Maryland Million Turf Sprint Handicap for the first time, followed by a win in the Find Handicap. His only loss in his four-year-old campaign came in the Forty Niner Stakes at Aqueduct on December 19.^[1] He was named the Maryland-bred champion sprinter and turf runner.^[7]

Although he had shown the ability to win on both dirt and turf, and had won at distances of up to one mile, Leatherbury decided to focus the gelding on turf sprints in the mid-Atlantic racing circuit.^[4] Accordingly, Ben's Cat would race in many of the same races each year and established several remarkable win records:

• He won the Mister Diz Stakes six years in a row, from 2010 to 2015,^[8] plus a third in 2016.
• The horse is a three-time winner, all consecutive from 2010 to 2012, of the Maryland Million Turf Sprint Handicap.^[9] He also finished second in 2013 through 2015.^[1]
• He has won the Jim McKay Turf Sprint at Pimlico Race Course five times, including four in a row from 2013 to 2016.^[10][11]
• Ben's Cat won the Grade III Turf Monster Handicap at Parx Racing in both 2011 and 2012.^[12] He also finished third in 2013 and second in 2014.^[1]
• He won the Fabulous Strike Handicap from 2012 to 2014.^[1]
• Ben's Cat won the Grade III Parx Dash from 2012 to 2014, also finishing second in 2011 and third in 2016.^[1]

Ben's Cat has earned a dedicated following in the mid-Atlantic region. "One reason is he’s been around so long," said Leatherbury. "Most horses are a flash in the pan, and just when people start to like them, they disappear from the scene. But he comes back year after year, so his fans are able to share in his success."^[6]

Honors

Ben's Cat was named the Maryland-bred Horse of the Year four times, from 2011 to 2014.^[7] He has also earned 17 divisional championships in the state-bred older horse, sprinter and turf horse categories.^[6]

In 2016, the Ben's Cat Stakes at Laurel Park for Maryland-bred horses was named in his honor.^[13]

Pedigree

Ben's Cat is inbred to Northern Dancer 4S x 5D, meaning Northern Dancer appears in the fourth generation of the sire's side of the pedigree and in the fifth generation of the dam's side of the pedigree. He is also inbred 5S x 5D to Somethingroyal, the dam of both Secretariat and Sir Gaylord.

References