Why Secretariat’s Kentucky Derby, Triple Crown records have never been broken

Secretariat is the greatest.

He's the GOAT of horses, if you will.

And his 1973 Triple Crown records have still never been broken.

What is Secretariat's Kentucky Derby record?

Secretariat started his Triple Crown pursuit at Churchill Downs.

He ran the mile-and-a-quarter in 1:59.40.

The second-fastest Derby came in 2001 from Monarchos in 1:59.97.

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What is Secretariat's Preakness Stakes record?

Secretariat then made the trip to the Preakness for the mile-and-a-sixteenth track, the shortest of the three Triple Crown courses.

He won that race in 1:53.

In 2020, Swiss Skydiver ran the second-fastest Preakness in 1:53.28.

What is Secretariat's Belmont Stakes record?

Secretariat completed his Triple Crown at the Belmont with the most jaw-dropping run of a horse ever.

He took the mile-and-a-half course in 2:24 and won by a mind-blowing 31 lengths.

The closets anyone has come to that was a 2:26 by Easy Goer in 1989.

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Why Secretariat's records haven't been broken

The Lexington Herald Leader gives three reasons for why Secretariat still stands atop all the Triple Crown leaderboards.

They are:

1. "Secretariat was a freak"
2. "Tracks have changed"
3. "Changes in the breed"

The first example has a source to the Herald Leader compare Secretariat to Michael Jordan. You just don't get an MJ every year.

The Herald Leader then writes that tracks have been made "slightly deeper, more cushioned and less conducive to very fast racing times."

And then NBC's Randy Moss told the Herald Leader that "the breed is not as sturdy as it used to be... They are bred for speed with very little attention paid to durability or stamina."

Secretariat retired before he turned 4. There was never a chance to see him hang on too long, and he wasn't even as dominant in his last few races after the Belmont.

Maybe his records will be broken someday by just the right combination of factors.

But for now, Secretariat looks like the untouchable atop all three Triple Crown races.

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