Rags To Riches, The Story Behind The Painting

How good is Rags to Riches? We know this: Throughout the annals of the Thoroughbred racing, no filly had accomplished a similar feat.

Think of the names: Ruffian, Lady’s Secret, Personal Ensign, Winning Colors, Go For Wand, to name a few. Without question, legends all, but none claimed victory in America’s “Test of Champions,” the mile-and-a-half Belmont Stakes.

After overcoming a breath-taking stumble at the break, Rags to Riches settled into rhythm. A mile-and-a-quarter later at the top of the stretch, jockey John Velazquez deftly maneuvered her into position for a "no excuse chance" against her six male rivals.

The next quarter mile was horseracing at its best: a riveting stretch duel between the best colt and best filly in the land. Rags to Riches and Preakness winner Curlin were staring each other in the eye, neither one giving an inch. At the eighth pole, track announcer Tom Durkin shouted, "With a furlong to go, it's a battle of the sexes!" As they hit the wire, the bright chestnut with large white blaze had soundly repulsed the enormous colt’s effort. Rags to Riches became the first filly in 102 years to win the Belmont Stakes.

At times horses pull-off stunning victories due to circumstances, like an inexplicable speed duel which causes an ‘honest’ race to fall apart. But there was no smoke & mirrors to Rags to Riches’ Belmont Stakes win. It was a clean run race. Moreover, there are years when the Belmont Stakes has less-than-stellar fields --- like in recent memory when such horses as Go and Go, Commendable and Sarava have won. But not in 2007.

We would learn by years’ end that Lawyer Ron was the nation’s top older horse, that Hard Spun was one of history’s most durable --- if not best unsung 3-year-olds; that Street Sense would become the first horse to win the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and Kentucky Derby, and finally that Curlin would become Horse of the Year, while decisively defeating all of the above, except
.... Rags to Riches.

As racing fans in 2007, we were witnesses to history.

This painting shows John Velazquez exuberantly celebrating his first victory as a jockey in a Classic. It was also legendary trainer Todd Pletcher’s first ever victory in a Triple Crown race.