Epitome (USA)
April 21, 1985 – November 12, 2004
Summing (USA) x Honest and True (USA), by Mr. Leader (USA)
Family 8-c
April 21, 1985 – November 12, 2004
Summing (USA) x Honest and True (USA), by Mr. Leader (USA)
Family 8-c
Although she was the daughter of a Belmont Stakes (USA-G1) winner, Epitome took after the more precocious and speedy elements in her pedigree and was a champion at 2. Essentially a miler, she did not train on as well as hoped at 3 but was a successful broodmare, though her daughters have not bred on.
Race record
14 starts, 5 wins, 5 seconds, 2 thirds, US$631,755
1987:
1988:
Honors
Eclipse Award, American champion 2-year-old filly (1987)
Assessments
Co-highweighted with Over All at 123 pounds on the Experimental Free Handicap for American juvenile fillies of 1987.
Rated at 113 pounds on the Daily Racing Form’s Free Handicap for American 3-year-old fillies of 1988, 13 pounds below champion Winning Colors.
As an individual
A bay filly, Epitome preferred to come from well off the pace.
As a producer
Epitome produced 11 named foals, of which nine started and seven won. Her important foals are as follow:
Connections
Foaled at Jonabell Farm in Kentucky, Epitome was bred by Benny Bell Williams and Jessica Bell Nicholson. She was owned by John A. Bell III, who bought her back for the Bell family from the 1986 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky summer yearling sale for US$150,000. She was trained by Phil Hauswald and was ridden to her win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies by Pat Day. She died of a ruptured artery on November 12, 2004, and was buried at Elmwood Farm, where she had been boarded. She was in foal to Pulpit at the time of her death.
Pedigree notes
Epitome is inbred 5x4 to 1949 French champion older male Djeddah and 5x5x5 to five-time American champion sire Nasrullah, also the English/Irish champion sire of 1951. She is a half sister to Truly Do (by Vigors), dam of listed stakes winner Three Diamonds (by Lustra) and second dam of Grade 3 winner Jody Slew, and to Trickentreat (by Clever Trick), second dam of Grade 2 winner Umpateedle. Epitome is also a half sister to Polly Adler (by Housebuster), dam of listed stakes winner Yoursmineours (by Belong to Me) and second dam of Grade 2 winners War Story and Land Over Sea and Grade 3 winner Shared Property.
Epitome and her sisters were produced from Grade 1-placed multiple stakes winner Honest and True (by Mr. Leader), a half sister to two-time French champion Green Forest (by Shecky Greene) and French Group 3 winner Green Paradise (by Vigors). Honest and True, in turn, is out of Tell Meno Lies (by The Axe II), a winning half sister to stakes winners Energy Boy (by Mr. Washington) and Emerald Landing (by First Landing). The last-named mare is the dam of Canadian stakes winners Paper Trail (by Bounding Basque) and Forest Green (by Shecky Greene).
Tell Meno Lies is out of Filatonga, a Count of Honor mare who managed only one win from 54 starts. The next dam in Epitome’s tail-female line, Blarney Castle (by Nasrullah) is an unplaced full sister to 1959 Sysonby Handicap winner The Irishman and a half sister to multiple stakes winner Knocklofty (by Parnassus) and 1975 Kentucky Broodmare of the Year Shenanigans (by Native Dancer). Produced from the important broodmare Bold Irish (by Fighting Fox), Blarney Castle is also a half sister to Longford (by Menow), dam of 1963 American champion 2-year-old filly Castle Forbes (by Tulyar); to Leix (by Turn-to), dam of 1966 Astarita Stakes winner Irish County (by Swaps) and stakes winners Irish Chief (by Tulyar) and Ruff Mark (by Master Hand); to Castle Hyde (by Tulyar), dam of stakes winner Ramhyde (by Rambunctious); and to Irish Trip (by Globemaster), dam of multiple stakes winner Dungarven (by Triple Bend).
Books and media
A video of Epitome’s victory in the 1987 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX1PSBe13eI.
Fun facts
Last updated: August 5, 2022
Race record
14 starts, 5 wins, 5 seconds, 2 thirds, US$631,755
1987:
- Won Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (USA-G1, 8FD, Hollywood)
- Won Pocahontas Stakes (USA, 8FD, Churchill Downs)
- 2nd Alcibiades Stakes (USA-G2, 8.5FD, Keeneland)
1988:
- 2nd Falls City Handicap (USA-G3, 9FD, Churchill Downs)
- 2nd Honeybee Stakes (USA-L, 8.5FD, Oaklawn Park)
Honors
Eclipse Award, American champion 2-year-old filly (1987)
Assessments
Co-highweighted with Over All at 123 pounds on the Experimental Free Handicap for American juvenile fillies of 1987.
Rated at 113 pounds on the Daily Racing Form’s Free Handicap for American 3-year-old fillies of 1988, 13 pounds below champion Winning Colors.
As an individual
A bay filly, Epitome preferred to come from well off the pace.
As a producer
Epitome produced 11 named foals, of which nine started and seven won. Her important foals are as follow:
- Faltaat (1990, by Mr. Prospector), was highweighted among older males in the United Arab Emirates over 5-7 furlongs in 1995 after winning the 1994 Abu Dhabu 1200 Prestige Race and Jebal Ali 1200 Prestige Race (both non-blacktype events). He sired 24 stakes winners from 643 named foals of racing age, headed by 2002/2003 New Zealand Horse of the Year Tit for Taat.
- Danjur (1992, by Dayjur) won the listed Churchill Downs Turf Sprint Stakes as a 4-year-old. He sired one black-type stakes winner from 111 named foals of racing age.
- Essence of Dubai (1999, by Pulpit) won the Norfolk Stakes (USA-G2) at 2 and the Super Derby (USA-G2) and UAE Derby (UAE-G2) at 3. He sired only two stakes winners from 238 named foals of racing age but is the sire of 2010 American champion female sprinter Dubai Majesty, winner of that year’s Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (USA-G1).
Connections
Foaled at Jonabell Farm in Kentucky, Epitome was bred by Benny Bell Williams and Jessica Bell Nicholson. She was owned by John A. Bell III, who bought her back for the Bell family from the 1986 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky summer yearling sale for US$150,000. She was trained by Phil Hauswald and was ridden to her win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies by Pat Day. She died of a ruptured artery on November 12, 2004, and was buried at Elmwood Farm, where she had been boarded. She was in foal to Pulpit at the time of her death.
Pedigree notes
Epitome is inbred 5x4 to 1949 French champion older male Djeddah and 5x5x5 to five-time American champion sire Nasrullah, also the English/Irish champion sire of 1951. She is a half sister to Truly Do (by Vigors), dam of listed stakes winner Three Diamonds (by Lustra) and second dam of Grade 3 winner Jody Slew, and to Trickentreat (by Clever Trick), second dam of Grade 2 winner Umpateedle. Epitome is also a half sister to Polly Adler (by Housebuster), dam of listed stakes winner Yoursmineours (by Belong to Me) and second dam of Grade 2 winners War Story and Land Over Sea and Grade 3 winner Shared Property.
Epitome and her sisters were produced from Grade 1-placed multiple stakes winner Honest and True (by Mr. Leader), a half sister to two-time French champion Green Forest (by Shecky Greene) and French Group 3 winner Green Paradise (by Vigors). Honest and True, in turn, is out of Tell Meno Lies (by The Axe II), a winning half sister to stakes winners Energy Boy (by Mr. Washington) and Emerald Landing (by First Landing). The last-named mare is the dam of Canadian stakes winners Paper Trail (by Bounding Basque) and Forest Green (by Shecky Greene).
Tell Meno Lies is out of Filatonga, a Count of Honor mare who managed only one win from 54 starts. The next dam in Epitome’s tail-female line, Blarney Castle (by Nasrullah) is an unplaced full sister to 1959 Sysonby Handicap winner The Irishman and a half sister to multiple stakes winner Knocklofty (by Parnassus) and 1975 Kentucky Broodmare of the Year Shenanigans (by Native Dancer). Produced from the important broodmare Bold Irish (by Fighting Fox), Blarney Castle is also a half sister to Longford (by Menow), dam of 1963 American champion 2-year-old filly Castle Forbes (by Tulyar); to Leix (by Turn-to), dam of 1966 Astarita Stakes winner Irish County (by Swaps) and stakes winners Irish Chief (by Tulyar) and Ruff Mark (by Master Hand); to Castle Hyde (by Tulyar), dam of stakes winner Ramhyde (by Rambunctious); and to Irish Trip (by Globemaster), dam of multiple stakes winner Dungarven (by Triple Bend).
Books and media
A video of Epitome’s victory in the 1987 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX1PSBe13eI.
Fun facts
- Epitome’s 30-1 charge home in the 1987 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies was aided by the photography equipment lined up along the inside rail. Jeanne Jones, who had opened a lead of six lengths at the furlong pole, appeared to be on her way to victory when she propped on seeing the equipment, and Epitome was able to get up in the final stride to win by a nose.
Last updated: August 5, 2022