BY BROCK SHERIDAN
JUNE 7, 1986—A few races before Danzig Connection won the Belmont Stakes (G1) ahead of Polish Navy and Derby-winner Ferdinand, giving trainer Woody Stephens his legendary fifth straight victory in the race, Florida-bred Ogygian won the second running of the $81,500 Riva Ridge Stakes.
Undefeated in three starts as a 2-year-old including a victory in the Grade 1 Futurity at Belmont Park, Ogygian was assigned the co-top weight of 126 pounds in the 1985 Experimental Free Handicap with fellow Florida-bred and Champion 2-Year-Old colt Tasso, winner of that year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) at Aqueduct.
Unfortunately, Ogygian missed the Triple Crown due to a freakish accident at Tartan Farms in Ocala, Fla., in December of his 2-year-old year. According to several reports in Blood-Horse and the New York Times, Ogygian kicked at a pipe in the shedrow of his barn and suffered a minor bone chip between his cannon and sesamoid bones that was later repaired with arthroscopic surgery.
Trained by Jan H. Nerud, the son of Tartan Farms president John Nerud, Ogygian made his first start of 1986 three days before the Kentucky Derby on April 30 at Belmont Park as the only 3-year-old facing older allowance horses. He suffered the first loss of his career when second to the 6-year-old multiple graded stakes-winner King’s Swan. The time for the six-and-a-half furlongs was 1:15 3/5, just three-fifths of a second off the track record.
He then won a seven-furlong allowance race at Belmont on May 23, covering seven furlongs in a very fast 1:20 3/5.
He made his first start against added money horses that year in the $81,500 Riva Ridge (now known as the Woody Stephens Stakes) at seven furlongs. He faced nine other 3-year-olds including the very fast stakes-winner Groovy, who had just finished sixth in the Preakness (G1), Grade 3-winner Landing Plot and allowance caliber runners Wayar and Michael’s Dancer.
Ogygian hooked up with Groovy after a fast half mile in :44 2/5 then pulled way in the stretch to win by three-and-a-half lengths, covering seven furlongs in 1:23 2/5 on sloppy track. Wayar was second with Landing Plot third.
Click here to watch the 1986 Riva Ridge Stakes.
Ogygian next won the nine-furlong Dwyer (G1) on July 5 at Belmont, defeating John’s Treasure in second with Personal Flag third. He then took the one-mile Jerome (G1) ahead of Mogambo and Moment of Hope at Belmont on Sept. 1. In the last race of his 3-year-old year, Ogygian was third behind Danzig Connection and Broad Brush in the mile-and-an-eighth Pegasus (G2) at the Meadowlands. After the race, several chips were discovered in the colt’s ankle. He raced one more time as a 4-year-old, finishing sixth in the six-furlong Bold Ruler won by Pine Tree Lane.
A homebred for Mr. and Mrs. James A. Binger’s Tartan Stable, founded by Binger’s father W. L. McKnight, Ogygian won seven of 10 career starts with a second and a third while earning $455,520.
Ogygian retired to stud at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Ky., where he stood until 1995. Following the 1995 breeding season he was sold to East Stud in Japan where he stood until 2005. He sired 23 stakes winners including graded stakes-winners D’Hallevant, Dice Dancer, Ramblin Guy and Fly’n J. Bryan and Eishin Washington, a successful sire in Japan.
At age 22, he was purchased by Old Friends for ¥1.5 million (US$13,400) as part of the farm’s initial class of pensioners. The other two were multiple graded-stakes winning millionaire Sunshine Forever and French Group 1-winner Creator. Ogygian was the last survivor among the three having died at Old Friends on March 14, 2005 from complications of colic.
Ogygian was by Damascus out of the winning Francis S. mare Gonfalon, who also produced stakes-placed Diggings, by Mr. Prospector. His second dam, the stakes-winning mare Grand Splendor, by Correlation, produced stakes-winner Paddock Park, stakes-placed Splendid Tap and Killaloe, the dam of stakes-winner and prominent Florida sire Fappiano. Among Fappiano’s initial crop was Tasso.
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