In 1978, racing fans witnessed a rivalry for the ages when a horse hailing from Harbor View Farm named Affirmed and an eighteen-year-old jockey dubbed “Stevie Wonder” faced off against the celebrated Alydar and emerged victorious in each leg of the Triple Crown---by a combined margin of less than two lengths. In this long-overdue biography of Affirmed, veteran sportswriter Lou Sahadi captures the life and spirit of this indomitable horse who twice earned Horse of the Year honors and placed #12 on the Blood-Horse list of “Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th Century.” The descendent of Man o’ War and War Admiral, Affirmed possessed an unrivaled combination of speed and heart. Sahadi chronicles how the initially docile chestnut colt began his stellar rise in 1977, winning seven times and placing twice in nine races. Entering the 1978 season, many experts speculated that Alydar, the latest prize product from the storied Calumet Farm, would prove himself the better horse on longer distances, as he had done in the Champagne Stakes the previous October. Trainer Laz Barrera opted to run Affirmed in three races in California—away from Alydar—in the lead-up to the Kentucky Derby, a strategy that paid off as Affirmed, under reigning Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year jockey Stevie Cauthen, bested his rival in three races that fascinated even the most casual of sports fans. Affirmed also delivers fascinating subplots including that of jockey Louis Pincay Jr., who took over for Cauthen in the winter of 1979 and rode Affirmed to victory in the horse’s final seven races; and owner Louis Wolfson, the Wall Street financier who found redemption in Harbor View Farm with Affirmed after Wolfson served one year in a federal prison, his conviction having led to the resignation of Supreme Court justice Abe Fortas. Sahadi draws on interviews with Cauthen, some members of the Wolfson family, and many more to tell the story of how Affirmed emerged from one of the most exciting showdowns in sports history to capture imaginations across America. Telling a story that transcended the Thoroughbred racing world, Affirmed finally gives this courageous horse his due.

Affirmed: The Last Triple Crown Winner

Sports & Outdoors

Sahadi, Lou

Individual Sports

Thomas Dunne Books

Raiders

DOUBLEDAY

Basketball's Fastest Hands

scholastic

Ken Stabler and the Oakland Raiders

Say Hey: The Autobiography of Willie Mays

The legendary athlete discusses his greatest plays, his greatest teammates and opponents, his personal life, his days in the Negro Leagues, contemporary baseball, and his most bitter moment in major league baseball

Mays, Willie

Biographies & Memoirs

Simon&Schuster

Whole story of the surprise winners of the 1981 World Series.  Greatest come-back team in baseball history.  Includes play by play accounts and 156 live-action photos.

The L.A. Dodgers, the world champions of baseball

Quill

The 49ers, super champs of pro football

The Clemson Tigers: From 1896 to glory

W. Morrow

The Redskins

Super Sundays I-XVII

Contemporary Books

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Books by Sahadi, Lou