Dr. Fager (horse)

Won Cowdin Stakes (USA, 7FD, Aqueduct)
Won World's Playground Stakes (USA, 6FD, Atlantic City)
2nd Champagne Stakes (USA, 8FD, Aqueduct)

1967:

Won New Hampshire Sweepstakes Classic (USA, 10FD, Rockingham Park; new track record 1:59-4/5)
Won Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap (USA, 10FD, Hawthorne)
Won Arlington Classic Stakes (USA, 8FD, Arlington Park)
Won Rockingham Special Stakes (USA, 9FD, Rockingham Park; new track record 1:48-1/5)
Won Gotham Stakes (USA, 8FD, Aqueduct)
Won Vosburgh Handicap (USA, 7FD, Aqueduct)
Won Withers Stakes (USA, 8FD, Aqueduct)
3rd Woodward Handicap (USA, 10FD, Aqueduct)
Also finished first in the Jersey Derby (USA, 9FD, Garden State) but was disqualified.

1968:

Won Suburban Handicap (USA, 10FD, Aqueduct; equaled track record 1:59-3/5)
Won United Nations Handicap (USA, 9.5FT, Atlantic City)
Won Washington Park Handicap (USA, 8FD, Arlington Park; new world record 1:32-1/5)
Won Californian Stakes (USA, 8.5FD, Hollywood Park)
Won Roseben Handicap (USA, 7FD, Aqueduct)
Won Vosburgh Handicap (USA, 7FD, Aqueduct; new American record 1:20-1/5)
2nd Brooklyn Handicap (USA, 10FD, Aqueduct)

Honors

National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame (inducted in 1971)
American Horse of the Year (1968)
American champion handicap male (1968)
American champion turf horse (1968)
American champion sprinter (1967, 1968)

Assessments

Dr. Fager was rated #6 among the 100 greatest American racehorses of the 20th century by an expert panel convened by The Blood-Horse (Thoroughbred Champions, Eclipse Press, 7th printing, 2005).

Rated at 125 pounds on the Experimental Free Handicap for American juveniles of 1966, 1 pound below champion Successor.

Rated at 130 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American 3yo males of 1967, 6 pounds below champion Damascus.

Rated at 136 pounds atop the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American older males of 1968, 6 pounds above second-rated Damascus.

Rated at 140 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American sprinters of 1968, 12 pounds above second-rated Kissin George.

Rated at 136 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American turf runners of 1968, 10 pounds above second-rated High Hat.

As an individual

Dr. Fager stood 16.2 hands. A rather plain but well-made bay, slightly sickle-hocked and Roman-nosed, he took some time to fill out his frame. He also had clubbed forefeet that required extra care and was subject to frequent colic, a tendency inherited from his dam Aspidistra. He was a fluid mover whose action was said to resemble that of his granddam, Tilly Rose. Competitive to a fault on the track, he was a gentle, almost timid stallion.

As a stallion

According to Jockey Club records, Dr. Fager sired 172 winners (64.9%) and 35 stakes winners (13.2%) from 265 named foals. He is an Intermediate chef-de-race in the Roman-Miller dosage system.

Sire rankings

Per the American Racing Manual (Daily Racing Form) series:

Led the American general sire list in 1977; 2nd in 1978; 3rd in 1975; 9th in 1974 and 1976.
10th on the American broodmare sire list in 1985, 1986, and 1988.

Per Great Thoroughbred Sires of the World (2006, Churchill, Reichard, and Rogers):

Led the American general sire list in 1977; 2nd in 1978; 3rd in 1975; 9th in 1974; 10th in 1976.
10th on the American broodmare sire list in 1985 and 1986.

Per Thoroughbred Heritage (www.tbheritage.com):

Led the American general sire list in 1977 by domestic earnings.

Notable progeny

Dearly Precious (USA), Dr. Patches (USA), Killaloe (USA), L'Alezane (CAN), Tree of Knowledge (USA)

Notable progeny of daughters

Coup de Fusil (USA), Cure the Blues (USA), Equalize (USA), Fappiano (USA), Great Neck (USA), Jedina (USA), Leroy S. (USA), Quiet American (USA), Sewickley (USA), Shared Interest (USA), Tantalizing (USA), Too Chic (USA), Torrential (USA), Wings of Jove (USA)

Connections

Foaled in Florida, Dr. Fager was bred and owned by William L. McKnight in the name of his Tartan Farms. He was trained by John Nerud. He entered stud in 1969 in Florida at Tartan Farms as the property of a syndicate. He died of a ruptured stomach following the 1976 breeding season and was buried at Tartan on land that is now part of Winding Oaks Farm.

Pedigree notes

Dr. Fager is inbred 3x4 to Bull Dog and 4x5x5 to Bull Dog's sire Teddy. He is a half brother to three stakes winners including two-time American champion sprinter Ta Wee (by Intentionally), herself the dam of four stakes winners including 1978 Paumonok Handicap (USA-G3) winner Great Above (by Minnesota Mac). He is also a half brother to Magic (by Buckpasser), dam of stakes winner Magnificence (by Graustark); second dam of the useful sprinter and sire Pentelicus, 1995 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) winner Tayasu Tsuyoshi and 1996 Santa Anita Derby (USA-G1) winner Cavonnier; and third dam of 1990 American champion 3-year-old male Unbridled and 1991 Wood Memorial Invitational Stakes (USA-G1) winner Cahill Road. Dr. Fager's dam Aspidistra was the only foal produced by 1951 Prioress Stakes winner Tilly Rose (by the Bull Dog horse Bull Brier).

Books and media

Dr. Fager was the second book in the Thoroughbred Legends series from Eclipse Press. It was written by Steve Haskin and was published in 2000.
A Hole in the Wind: The Story of a Man and His Horse was written by Charles A. Fager, the neurosurgeon who saved trainer John Nerud's life and had the equine Dr. Fager named for him as a result. The book was published by Jay Street Publishers in 2004.
Dr. Fager's rivalry with Damascus was featured as the 12th chapter of Horse Racing's Greatest Rivalries (2008, Eclipse Press), a compilation produced by the staff of The Blood-Horse.
Dr. Fager is one of 50 Thoroughbreds profiled in Royal Blood: Fifty Years of Classic Thoroughbreds. Written by racing historian Jim Bolus with illustrations and commentary by noted equine artist Richard Stone Reeves, the book was released by The Blood-Horse, Inc., in 1994.
A video clips of Dr. Fager in action in the 1968 United Nations Handicap can be accessed at Walter Lazary's Historical Horse Racing (https://www.historical-horse-racing-lazmannick.com/1a-americas-best-turf-horses-of-the-20th-century/).

Fun facts

Dr. Fager was named for Dr. Charles Fager, the neurosurgeon who saved John Nerud's life after the trainer developed a blood clot on the brain following a fall from a stable pony in 1965.
Dr. Fager's time of 1:33-4/5 in the 1967 Withers Stakes was not a track record, but it was the fastest mile run to that time by a 3-year-old in New York.
Although the file on Dr. Fager collected for Len Ragozin's speed figures disappeared mysteriously, Ragozin's vice president Len Friedman reportedly stated that Dr. Fager's top Ragozin figure was a full two points faster than for any horse they had ever studied going into the first few years of the 21st century.
As a publicity stunt, Marion County Deputy Sheriff Don Moreland stopped the van carrying Dr. Fager to his retirement in Ocala, Fla., and issued him a traffic summons for (what else?) speeding.
Dr. Fager's world record mile was ranked #7 in Horse Racing's Top 100 Moments, a review of racing in the 20th century compiled by The Blood-Horse and released in 2006. Dr. Fager also played a role in the 1967 Woodward Stakes, which made the list at #39.
The Dr. Fager Stakes is the first leg of the Florida Sire Stakes series for state-bred juveniles. It is contested at 6 furlongs on dirt at Gulfstream Park.

Photo credit

Photographer unknown. From the collection of Quarter Horse Record (Susan Larkin); used by permission.

Last updated: October 5, 2022