American Pharoah: nine wins, a Triple Crown and the figures behind them

American Pharoah won the 2015 American Triple Crown—Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes—and then the Breeders’ Cup Classic. He was the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978, ending a 37-year gap. The Triple Crown plus the Classic became known as his “Grand Slam,” as America’s Best Racing’s career retrospective recounts. His career finished with nine wins and one second from 11 starts, earning $8,650,300, according to his Equibase record.

For a racecard reader, his record also illustrates why finishing position, speed figure and race conditions should be read together—not treated as interchangeable measures.

Identity and complete race record

American Pharoah is a Kentucky-bred bay Thoroughbred, foaled on February 2, 2012, by Pioneerof the Nile out of Littleprincessemma, whose sire was Yankee Gentleman. He raced for Zayat Stables and was trained by Bob Baffert. Victor Espinoza rode him in his final start; Martin Garcia rode him on debut. These details appear in his Equibase profile and debut chart.

The table runs oldest to newest. “Finish” is his placing; the final column is his Equibase Speed Figure, not his race time or carried weight. Distances are in furlongs: eight furlongs equal one mile.

Date	Race	Distance	Finish	Equibase Speed Figure
9 Aug 2014	Del Mar maiden special weight	6½f	5th	70
3 Sep 2014	Del Mar Futurity	7f	1st	105
27 Sep 2014	FrontRunner Stakes	8½f	1st	107
14 Mar 2015	Rebel Stakes	8½f	1st	107
11 Apr 2015	Arkansas Derby	9f	1st	107
2 May 2015	Kentucky Derby	10f	1st	109
16 May 2015	Preakness Stakes	9½f	1st	110
6 Jun 2015	Belmont Stakes	12f	1st	111
2 Aug 2015	Haskell Invitational	9f	1st	110
29 Aug 2015	Travers Stakes	10f	2nd	108
31 Oct 2015	Breeders’ Cup Classic	10f	1st	119

Results and figures: Equibase’s complete career record. Stakes-race distances: Coolmore’s principal performances; debut distance: official chart.

He was therefore not unbeaten. His defeats were fifth on debut and second to Keen Ice in the Travers. In 2015 alone, he won seven of eight starts. Equibase also records his 2014 champion two-year-old colt award, 2015 champion three-year-old colt and Horse of the Year awards, and 2021 Hall of Fame induction.

What his figures and conditions tell you

A winning “1” does not measure the performance

American Pharoah’s seven 2015 wins produced Equibase figures ranging from 107 to 119. The placing stayed the same, but the numerical assessment did not. His career-high 119 came in the Breeders’ Cup Classic—not in the longer Belmont Stakes, where he earned 111.

A speed figure expresses a timed performance on an adjusted numerical scale. Equibase’s published guide describes TrackMaster’s adjustments for track, distance, surface and daily track conditions. A figure of 119 is neither 119 miles per hour nor a 119lb handicap mark. Keep comparisons within the same provider’s scale; our speed-figure provider comparison explains why different brands’ numbers should not be mixed directly.

Time needs distance and track condition

His Triple Crown winning times were:

• Kentucky Derby: 2:03.02 over 1¼ miles, on fast dirt.
• Preakness: 1:58.46 over 1³⁄₁₆ miles, on sloppy dirt.
• Belmont: 2:26.65 over 1½ miles, on fast dirt.

Those are the recorded conditions and times in the official Derby, Preakness and Belmont charts. The shortest elapsed time does not identify the best performance: these were different distances, courses and conditions. “Fast” here is the chart’s track-condition label, not a rating of the horse.

His Belmont victory, by 5½ lengths, completed the Triple Crown but did not break Secretariat’s 2:24.00 track record. For that separate comparison, see the fastest Belmont Stakes times at 1½ miles.

Weight is a separate field

In the Classic, American Pharoah carried 122lb, while runner-up Effinex carried 126lb. The race conditions assigned those weights to Northern Hemisphere three-year-olds and older males respectively; they were not handicap weights calculated from speed figures. American Pharoah won by 6½ lengths in 2:00.07, marked as a new track record at the time in the official Classic chart.

The useful reading order is conditions first, then placing, time or figure, carried weight and running comments. His results document exceptional performances; they do not make any one number a guarantee of another win.

American Pharoah as a sire: October 2026 update

His name now also appears in runners’ pedigrees as their sire. As of 3 October 2026, Coolmore lists him at Shizunai Stallion Station in Japan. Its 26 June 2026 announcement confirmed an agreement to extend his stay for a second breeding season before returning to Ashford Stud in Kentucky. On a racecard, that pedigree entry identifies parentage—not the offspring’s own form or rating.