Never Say Die was an international traveler before he was even born, having been conceived in England and foaled in Kentucky. He was sent back to Europe as a yearling and ended up being rated the best European runner of 1954. At the end of his racing career, his owner generously made a gift of him to the English government. While not an exceptional stallion, he did reasonably well and made several significant contributions to international breeding.
Race record
12 starts, 3 wins, 1 second, 3 thirds, £31,146 (win money only)
1953:
1954:
Honors
1954 English champion 3-year-old male
Assessments
Never Say Die was rated at 115 pounds on the Free Handicap for English juveniles of 1953, 18 pounds below champion The Pie King.
Never Say Die earned a Timeform rating of 137 pounds as a 3-year-old, topping the Timeform ratings for all European runners of 1954.
In their book A Century of Champions (1999, Portway Press Ltd.), British experts John Randall and Tony Morris ranked Never Say Die 53rd among British-based racehorses of the 20th century, calling him a “superior” Derby winner.
As an individual
A chestnut horse, Never Say Die stood 15.3 hands; other than for lop ears, he was considered a handsome individual. He was thick-bodied and powerfully made but unlike many of the Nasrullahs had an easy-going disposition. He was a hard puller and not an easy ride, and he did best when allowed to run on a long rein.
As a stallion
According to records maintained by The Jockey Club, Never Say Die sired 240 winners (43.3%) and 42 stakes winners (7.6%) from 554 named foals. He was criticized as getting weak-boned stock.
Sire rankings
Per Great Thoroughbred Sires of the World (2006, Churchill, Reichard, and Rogers):
Per Thoroughbred Heritage (www.tbheritage.com):
Notable progeny
Battle-Waggon (GB), Die Hard (GB), Larkspur (IRE), Mellay (GB), Never Beat (GB), Never Too Late II (USA)
Notable progeny of daughters
Ackstatic (USA), Attica Meli (GB), Celina (GB), Good Times (ITY), Mistigri (GB), Moulines (FR), Pepenador (USA), Verbatim (USA)
Connections
Foaled at Jonabell Farm in Kentucky, Never Say Die was bred and owned by Robert Sterling Clark. He was trained by Joseph Lawson. He stood his entire stud career at the English National Stud. He was euthanized in 1975 due to deteriorating health and was buried in the National Stud's horse cemetery.
Pedigree notes
Never Say Die is inbred 5x5 to two-time English champion broodmare sire Chaucer. He is a half brother to Meadow Song (by Nirgal), second dam of multiple Group 2 winner Triple First and third dam of English Group 2 winner Third Watch and European Group 3 winners Maysoon, Three Tails and Richard of York. He is also a half brother to Banbox (by Combat), third dam of 1984 Gran Premio Los Haras (URU-G1) winner Stall Sour.
Singing Grass, the dam of Never Say Die, was stakes-placed in England. She is a half sister to Artena (by Questionnaire), whose son Portersville (by Count Fleet) won the Brooklyn Handicap and Carter Handicap in 1957. She is also a half sister to Four O'Clock (by Eight Thirty), dam of English stakes winner Barnegat II (by Mossborough) and third dam of 1978 Spinaway Stakes (USA-G1) winner Palm Hut.
Singing Grass and her siblings were produced from the winning Vatout mare Boreale, a full sister to the minor stakes winner Trois Pistoles and a half sister to 1939 English champion 3-year-old filly Galatea II (by Dark Legend), winner of that year's One Thousand Guineas and Oaks Stakes. The next dam in the tail-female line, the French-bred Galaday (by Sir Gallahad III) was second in the 1929 Selima Stakes and third in the 1930 Kentucky Oaks and is also the dam of Confetti (by War Admiral), dam of 1953 King George Stakes and King's Stand Stakes Fairy Flax (by Pensive) and English juvenile stakes winner Carnival Dancer (by Native Dancer).
Books and media
Fun facts
Last updated: November 27, 2024
Race record
12 starts, 3 wins, 1 second, 3 thirds, £31,146 (win money only)
1953:
- Won Rosslyn Stakes (ENG, 6FT, Ascot)
- 3rd Richmond Stakes (ENG, 6FT, Goodwood)
- 3rd Dewhurst Stakes (ENG, 7FT, Newmarket)
1954:
- Won Derby Stakes (ENG, 12FT, Epsom)
- Won St. Leger S. (ENG, 14F+132yT, Doncaster)
- 2nd Union Jack Stakes (ENG, Liverpool)
- 3rd Newmarket Stakes (ENG, 10FT, Newmarket)
Honors
1954 English champion 3-year-old male
Assessments
Never Say Die was rated at 115 pounds on the Free Handicap for English juveniles of 1953, 18 pounds below champion The Pie King.
Never Say Die earned a Timeform rating of 137 pounds as a 3-year-old, topping the Timeform ratings for all European runners of 1954.
In their book A Century of Champions (1999, Portway Press Ltd.), British experts John Randall and Tony Morris ranked Never Say Die 53rd among British-based racehorses of the 20th century, calling him a “superior” Derby winner.
As an individual
A chestnut horse, Never Say Die stood 15.3 hands; other than for lop ears, he was considered a handsome individual. He was thick-bodied and powerfully made but unlike many of the Nasrullahs had an easy-going disposition. He was a hard puller and not an easy ride, and he did best when allowed to run on a long rein.
As a stallion
According to records maintained by The Jockey Club, Never Say Die sired 240 winners (43.3%) and 42 stakes winners (7.6%) from 554 named foals. He was criticized as getting weak-boned stock.
Sire rankings
Per Great Thoroughbred Sires of the World (2006, Churchill, Reichard, and Rogers):
- Led the combined English/Irish general sire list in 1962; 3rd in 1960.
- 4th on the combined English/Irish broodmare sire list in 1975; 5th in 1974; 9th in 1968.
Per Thoroughbred Heritage (www.tbheritage.com):
- Led the combined English/Irish general sire list in 1962.
Notable progeny
Battle-Waggon (GB), Die Hard (GB), Larkspur (IRE), Mellay (GB), Never Beat (GB), Never Too Late II (USA)
Notable progeny of daughters
Ackstatic (USA), Attica Meli (GB), Celina (GB), Good Times (ITY), Mistigri (GB), Moulines (FR), Pepenador (USA), Verbatim (USA)
Connections
Foaled at Jonabell Farm in Kentucky, Never Say Die was bred and owned by Robert Sterling Clark. He was trained by Joseph Lawson. He stood his entire stud career at the English National Stud. He was euthanized in 1975 due to deteriorating health and was buried in the National Stud's horse cemetery.
Pedigree notes
Never Say Die is inbred 5x5 to two-time English champion broodmare sire Chaucer. He is a half brother to Meadow Song (by Nirgal), second dam of multiple Group 2 winner Triple First and third dam of English Group 2 winner Third Watch and European Group 3 winners Maysoon, Three Tails and Richard of York. He is also a half brother to Banbox (by Combat), third dam of 1984 Gran Premio Los Haras (URU-G1) winner Stall Sour.
Singing Grass, the dam of Never Say Die, was stakes-placed in England. She is a half sister to Artena (by Questionnaire), whose son Portersville (by Count Fleet) won the Brooklyn Handicap and Carter Handicap in 1957. She is also a half sister to Four O'Clock (by Eight Thirty), dam of English stakes winner Barnegat II (by Mossborough) and third dam of 1978 Spinaway Stakes (USA-G1) winner Palm Hut.
Singing Grass and her siblings were produced from the winning Vatout mare Boreale, a full sister to the minor stakes winner Trois Pistoles and a half sister to 1939 English champion 3-year-old filly Galatea II (by Dark Legend), winner of that year's One Thousand Guineas and Oaks Stakes. The next dam in the tail-female line, the French-bred Galaday (by Sir Gallahad III) was second in the 1929 Selima Stakes and third in the 1930 Kentucky Oaks and is also the dam of Confetti (by War Admiral), dam of 1953 King George Stakes and King's Stand Stakes Fairy Flax (by Pensive) and English juvenile stakes winner Carnival Dancer (by Native Dancer).
Books and media
- Never Say Die is profiled in Chapter 25 of Sir Charles Leicester's Bloodstock Breeding (1957, J. A. Allen & Co, Ltd.; updated by Howard Wright and re-released by the same firm in 1983).
- James C. Nicholson's Never Say Die: A Kentucky Colt, the Epsom Derby, and the Rise of the Modern Thoroughbred Industry was released by the University Press of Kentucky in 2013.
Fun facts
- According to Richard Ulbrich (Peerage of Racehorses, 1994), Never Say Die got his name after some 20 previously submitted names had been rejected by the registry. Exasperated, his owner sent in yet another application with the comment “Never say die!” and, in the whimsy of the moment, submitted that name, which was accepted.
- Racing historian Edward Bowen gives another account of how Never Say Die got his name. According to Bowen, Never Say Die was an unusually large foal who suffered a very difficult birth as a result of his size, breaking several ribs. John A. Bell III of Jonabell Farm gave the weakened colt a shot of bourbon and for several days had the youngster hauled from barn to paddock in a cart so that the foal could enjoy the beneficial effects of fresh air and sunshine. Never Say Die earned his name by pulling through.
- When Never Say Die won the Derby Stakes in 1954, he became the second American-bred colt to win England's premier Classic, following Iroquois in 1881. Sadly, Robert Clark was unable to witness his colt's victory as he was hospitalized in New York due to illness.
- Never Say Die's winning margin of 12 lengths remains the greatest ever recorded in the classic St. Leger Stakes as of 2024.
- Never Say Die was the first of champion jockey Lester Piggott's record nine Derby Stakes winners and won at the longest odds of the group, scoring at 33-1. Piggott was but 18 at the time, making him the youngest jockey to win the great race in the 20th century.
- Robert Clark's donation of Never Say Die to the English government was made with the proviso that 10 nominations to the horse would be reserved for Irish breeders each season.
Last updated: November 27, 2024