October 20, 1923: Zev vs. Papyrus

October 20, 1923: One of the biggest match races in American history is held at Belmont Park.

It's easy to ask, "If Man o' War was the most famous thoroughbred race horse of the era, how come he didn't win the Triple Crown?" Well, at the time, the Triple Crown had been won only once, by Sir Barton in 1919, and it was not the big deal that it would later become. Man o' War won the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes in 1920, but did not even enter the Kentucky Derby.

Zev had been the leading 2-year-old horse in America in 1922. In 1923, the Preakness was run before the Kentucky Derby, and Zev, ridden by Earl Sande, ran a bad race. But he came back to win the Derby and the Belmont Stakes.

In England, which still thought of itself as the worldwide capital of horse racing -- "The Sport of Kings," partly because the British royal family had owned champion horses, and still does -- Papyrus had been doing much the same thing as Zev. Ridden by Steve Donoghue, he was his country's leading 2-year-old racehorse, and, the next year, won the country's leading race, The Derby (and, unlike in America, that's pronounced "DAR-bee," not "DER-bee") at Epsom Race Course in Surrey.

On August 19, 1923, a deal was struck to have Papyrus race against Zev, to determine the best racehorse in the world. The winning horse would win $100,000 (about $1.7 million in 2022 money), with the losing horse getting just $2,000. But Papyrus would be running at something of a disadvantage: In 2 warmup races, he was bumped by another horse, the one in the 2nd race actually drawing blood.

But he was determined to be fit enough to sail to America and race against Zev. Accompanying him on the voyage were Donoghue, trainer Basil Jarvis, 2 stable boys, his stablemate Bargold, a cat with whom Papyrus had bonded, and a special feed mix. But the British media, normally so jingoistic, was actually pessimistic, thinking the effects of the voyage and the change in environment -- normally racing on grass, this would be his 1st time running on a dirt track -- would work against Papyrus.

A crowd of 70,000 people filed into Belmont Park, just outside New York City in Elmont, Nassau County, New York. The track was muddy, and while Papyrus held his own for the first half of the race, Zev pulled away, and won by 5 lengths. Although noting the conditions, Jarvis acknowledged that he had been fairly beaten by a better horse.

Papyrus was never the same horse. He ran 4 races as a 4-year-old, didn't win any of them, and was retired to stud. He lived until 1941. In contrast, Zev won races as a 4-year-old, and broke Man o' War's record as horse racing's all-time leading money-winner. He was less successful at stud than Papyrus, and lived until 1943.

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October 20, 1923 was a Saturday. Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, now named Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, opened on this day in Norman, Oklahoma. The University of Oklahoma beat Washington University of St. Louis, 62-7. I have a separate entry for this event. These other notable college football games were played that day:

* In an unusual North vs. South matchup, Army beat Auburn, 28-6 on The Plain at West Point, New York.

* Navy lost to Penn State, 21-3 at Beaver Field (not to be confused with the later Beaver Stadium) in State College, Pennsylvania.

* Fordham lost to Lehigh, 7-0 at Taylor Stadium in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

* Columbia lost to the University of Pennsylvania, 19-7 at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. This was only the 4th game at the new Franklin Field, which had replaced the one that had stood there since 1895.

* Rutgers beat New York University (NYU), 7-3 at Neilson Field in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

* Princeton lost to Notre Dame, 25-2 at Palmer Stadium in Princeton.

* Syracuse beat the University of Pittsburgh, 3-0 at Yankee Stadium. It was the 1st college football game played there.

* Harvard beat Holy Cross, 6-0 at Harvard Stadium in Boston.

* In what would later become an arch-rivalry, Michigan beat Ohio State, 23-0 at Ferry Field in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

* The University of Chicago beat nearby Northwester University, 13-0 at Stagg Field in Chicago.

* The University of Missouri and Saint Louis University played to a 0-0 tie at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis.

Also on this day, "Beat Generation" writer Philip Whalen was born. 

June 7, 1930: Gallant Fox Wins the Triple Crown

June 7, 1930: Gallant Fox becomes the 2nd horse to win American thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown.

Foaled at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky, Gallant Fox was trained by "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons, and ridden by Earl Sande. He won 2 races as a 2-year-old, and won the Wood Memorial as a warmup to the Triple Crown races.

In 1930, the Preakness Stakes was run first, and Gallant Fox won it by 3/4ers of a length over Crack Brigade. Two weeks later, the Kentucky Derby was held in a driving rain, and Gallant Fox won it by 2 lengths over Gallant Knight, his half-brother. (Both were sons of Sir Galahad III, whose wins did not include any Triple Crown races, but he became the leading sire of champion racehorses in his time.) It was Sande's 3rd Derby win, having won aboard Zev in 1923 and Flying Ebony in 1925.

Three weeks later, at Belmont Park, Gallant Fox was actually not the favorite at the Belmont, despite having won the Wood Memorial at nearby Jamaica Race Course. (It was moved to Aqueduct, also in Queens, in 1960.) The favorite was Whichone, the Champion Two-Year-Old Colt of the year before. Injured and unable to compete at Pimlico and Churchill Downs, he had won the Withers Stakes at Belmont, and so was considered to have the "home-field advantage." Gallant Fox won the race by 3 lengths.

In July, Gallant Fox raced against Gallant Knight again, in the Arlington Classic at Arlington Park outside Chicago, and won by a neck. He was beaten by Jim Dandy by 8 lengths in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga in August, but won his last 3 races of the year, the last being the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont.

He was retired thereafter, and in 1935, his son, Omaha, won the Triple Crown. They remain the only father and son to do so. Gallant Fox died in 1954, Fitzsimmons in 1966, and Sande in 1968.

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June 7, 1930 was a Saturday. These baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns, 12-5 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Yankees scored 7 runs in the 1st inning, and never looked back. Ed Wells went the distance for the win. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig both hit home runs.

* The New York Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 9-7 at the Polo Grounds. Mel Ott had 2 home runs and 6 RBIs. Bill Terry went 1-for-5.

* The Brooklyn Robins beat the Chicago Cubs, 12-9 at Ebbets Field. (The Dodgers were known as the Robins when Wilbert Robinson managed them from 1914 to 1931.)

* The Boston Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-4 at Braves Field in Detroit. Paul Waner went 1-for-3 with a walk, and Lloyd Waner did not play.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Boston Red Sox, 6-0 at Navin Field (later Briggs Stadium and Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. George Uhle pitched a 3-hit shutout.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 6-5 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Jimmie Foxx went 1-for-3 with 2 walks and 2 RBIs. Mickey Cochrane went 0-for-2 with 3 walks.

* The Philadelphia Phillies and the Cincinnati Reds were rained out at Baker Bowl in Philadelphia. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 12. The Reds swept, 9-5 and 6-1.

* And the Cleveland Indians and the Washington Senators were rained out at League Park in Cleveland. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 16. The Senators won the 1st game, 10-4. The Indians won the 2nd game, 13-6.