By: Jason Huang

Remembering The Horse Who Almost Won A Triple Crown

A hugely popular racing horse, Funny Cide, died this week at age 23.

Funny Cide was a thoroughbred horse from New York. He was small but a feisty chestnut ands underestimated before he entered the Kentucky derby in 2003. With odds of 12-1, he became the first New York-bred horse to ever win the Kentucky derby.

“I could not believe my eyes,” said Harold Cring, who is one of many co-owners of Funny Cide. “That’s our horse out in the front. I kept waiting for something to fall apart.” But unlike other New York state thoroughbreds, Funny Cide let nothing fall apart and he won the race.

In two weeks, the second race of the triple crown called the Preakness Stakes, Funny Cide won again, winning by almost 10 lengths.

But a stronger thoroughbred called the Empire Maker made it impossible for Funny Cide to win the triple crown and dominated the race, passing Funny Cide who dropped down lengths and won in the Belmont Stakes.

Funny Cide had won more than 3.5 million for his owners when he retired in the year of 2007.

When Funny Cide retired, he spent the rest of his life peacefully in a horse farm and died of complications of cholic.