2004 Breeders' Cup Mile Winner
Singletary wrote one of the great underdog stories in modern Breeders' Cup history when he stunned the racing world at Lone Star Park in 2004. He was foaled in 2000 and grew into a hard knocking turf miler. He raced for Little Red Feather Racing, the popular partnership group founded by Billy Koch that gave dozens of small share owners a chance to root home a Grade 1 winner. He was conditioned by Don Chatlos Jr., a journeyman trainer who finally got his big moment with this colt, and David Flores picked up the riding assignment for the biggest day of both their lives.
Singletary had built a solid record on the California turf circuit through 2004, but he had not yet won at the Grade 1 level when his connections decided to take their shot at the Breeders' Cup Mile at Lone Star Park outside Dallas. The field was packed with European stars and top American milers, and Singletary went off as a 16 to 1 long shot. Most of the racing public had no idea what was about to happen. He had been a horse for the partnership crowd, not the champion's circle.
The 2004 Breeders' Cup Mile turned into one of the most thrilling upsets in the history of the event. David Flores sat patiently on Singletary through the early running, then asked him to go in the long Lone Star stretch. The colt responded with a gritty late charge and held off another long shot, Antonius Pius, by a half length at the wire. There was a wonderful side story to the win as well, since Don Chatlos Jr. and David Flores had once been roommates years earlier as they tried to break into the racing business.
Singletary kept running well after his Breeders' Cup victory, including a follow up win in the Oak Tree Mile the next year at Santa Anita. He retired with several stakes wins and a permanent place in racing lore as a Breeders' Cup champion. Singletary is remembered as a true partnership group hero, the horse who carried hundreds of Little Red Feather owners into the winner's circle on the biggest day of the year and gave Don Chatlos Jr. the proudest moment of his training career.
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