“Against All Odds” depicts the thrilling photo finish victory of John Henry with jockey William Shoemaker in the irons as they ran down The Bart in the shadow of the wire in the inaugural running of the Arlington Million in 1981, the first Thoroughbred race to boast a purse of $1 million. The statue was originally unveiled in 1989 at Arlington International Racecourse.

“It is a great honor to make this gift to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in memory of the late Richard Duchossois, where it will be prominently displayed and enjoyed by racing fans for many years to come,” said Bill Carstanjen, CEO of CDI. “Much like Mr. Duchossois, 'Against All Odds' represents perseverance. May it serve as an inspiration to horses and humans alike that with courage and determination, what seems impossible can be achieved.”

“We are most grateful to Bill Carstanjen and everyone at Churchill Downs Incorporated for the generous donation of the 'Against All Odds' statue to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame,” said John Hendrickson, Chairman of National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. “This incredible work of art represents so many iconic elements of racing history–the inaugural Arlington Million, Hall of Famers John Henry and Bill Shoemaker, and the legacy of Richard Duchossois, a true Pillar of the Turf. We are honored to accept this wonderful addition to our collection and showcase it prominently on the Museum grounds, where it will have a forever home.”

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Born Jan. 3, 1943, in Santiago, Chile, Inda also did well for a time when training his own public stable.  Credited with the resurgence of Aaron and Marie Jones' Brazilian-bred mare Riboletta, who won six consecutive races, four of them Grade I's (making for a total of five Grade I's on the year), as a 5-year-old in 2000, Riboletta would be voted that year's Eclipse Champion Older Filly or Mare.

Inda, who resided locally, is survived by his wife Monica, daughters Monica Cowell and Lisa Isaguirre and four grandchildren.

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Inda is survived by his wife Monica, daughters Monica Cowell and Lisa Isaguirre and four grandchildren.

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On the racetrack, it figures to be a quiet afternoon. At the same track that has played host to Secretariat, Citation, Dr. Fager, John Henry and has been the site of the Grade I Arlington Million, the sport's first ever $1-million race, and a Breeders' Cup, the richest races of the day will be a pair of $40,000 allowance races.

“The mood here is one of  sheer depression,” said trainer Mike Campbell, who is the president of the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association. “This is as ugly as it gets. Churchill is so tone deaf that they are actually going to have fireworks on Saturday night after the races. More so than anything, that shows how tone deaf they are.”

The beginning of the end began in September 2019 when Churchill Downs declined to apply for a casino license for Arlington. The company committed to only two more years of racing at the suburban Chicago track.

That stunned horsemen, who had been led to believe that Churchill was on board when it came to opening a casino at Arlington, which would have guaranteed the track's future. Conventional wisdom is that Churchill does not want a casino at Arlington because it would compete with a highly successful gaming facility it owns in nearby Des Plaines, Illinois. The next step was Churchill announcing that the track was being put up for sale. The list of potential buyers includes a partnership led by former Arlington president Roy Arnold that wants to preserve racing, but it appears highly unlikely Churchill will sell to that group.

“It's corporate greed. That's all it is,” said trainer Michele Boyce, who has two entered for Saturday. “Churchill is obviously worried about making money for their shareholders, which they have done a very good job of.  Somewhere along the line, though, you've got to have a little bit of compassion too, for history and for people and for the traditions a place like Arlington has. To see racing in Chicago reduced to basically nothing is downright cruel.”

“Churchill Downs wants to own casinos,” said leading trainer Larry Rivelli. “It's a lot more lucrative to own a casino than a racetrack. It's just unfortunate because they had the opportunity to open a casino here and they passed on it. That's why everyone is so angry. They lobbied for it for 20 years and in the end they said no.”

Thoroughbred racing moves to Hawthorne Oct. 8, the first day of a meet that will run through Dec. 27. Hawthorne has been given the green light to build a casino and is in no danger of closing. The problem is that it is the only racing facility left in the Chicago area and is required to divide its dates between Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing. There will be two Thoroughbred meets at Hawthorne next year, one that covers April, May and June and another that will be held in October, November and December. The Standardbreds will have the July, August and September dates, leaving a huge hole in the thoroughbred racing schedule.

For Rivelli, that's not a huge problem. He has a large stable and plenty of quality horses. He plans on having a division next year in Kentucky. But there are plenty of Illinois-based trainers who don't have the quality or quantity to pull something like that off.

“There are trainers here who are just sick about what is happening,” Campbell said. “There has been a gamut of emotions. I've got people who don't know how they are going to make a living. They don't know where they are going to go. The majority of the horsemen here are local guys who don't really have the quality to go somewhere else. They don't have that many options. We have trainers and owners here who are just ready to give up. This is going to take a terrible toll on the ranks of horse ownership.”

Boyce has already decided to move her operation to Indiana Grand. She will ship to Hawthorne on occasion, but says the truncated racing season next year in Illinois does not work for her. She doesn't see how a circuit can possibly make it when there is no racing during three keys months of the summer.

“It's not going to work until they can open up a new harness track,” she said. “I'm ready to sell my home and go elsewhere. The only thing that will save Illinois racing is if they can create a situation where both breeds can have their own track and have what they need. It's not shaping up that way right now. With the way things are, it's very hard to see a future in Illinois racing.”

Campbell and the horsemen have worked tirelessly to find a solution for Illinois's racing's problems. He said he is holding out some hope, only because the Arnold bid has yet to be formally rejected. But he's practical enough to know that there is very little hope and that 94 years after it opened Arlington is done.

When Arlington opened on Oct. 13, 1927, the Daily Herald called it “America's Greatest Race Course.” The weather was cold and the wind was biting but 20,000 fans showed up that day to welcome in Chicago's newest racetrack. The crowd was there to celebrate. That won't be the case Saturday. You don't celebrate at a funeral.

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As president and chief executive officer of Arlington Park, the late Joe Joyce conceived of and brought to fruition a race that would be called the Arlington Million, an event aimed at drawing the best horses to race over the renowned Arlington turf course not just those based domestically, but also from Europe. A race that would attract not only the best equine athletes, but also the most gifted jockeys and the most successful trainers.

“The concept of having a million-dollar race and making it international, that germinated and it was done in a short period of time,” Arlington's Richard L. Duchossois told ESPN's Thoroughbred Classics program. “Joe Joyce traveled around the world, Nick Clarke from the International Racing Bureau, everyone combined their thoughts and ideas and it became an instant success and immediately put Arlington back on the map.”

On Aug. 30, 1981, the dream became a reality. The inaugural Million drew the sort of field its creators could only have dreamt about. Representing the United States was 6-year-old John Henry from the California barn of Ron McAnally, who had won the first of his five divisional Eclipse Awards as this country's top grass horse with four Grade I victories in 1980. The former claimer had picked up in 1981 where he left off the previous season, winning his first four starts, including the GI Santa Anita H. on the dirt and the GI San Luis Rey S. and GI Hollywood Invitational H. on the grass. He was the pin-up horse that could help put the Million on the map, the one the organizers would have wanted most. Bill Shoemaker, who'd ridden him only once prior–a victory in that year's GIII Sword Dancer S., then run at Belmont Park–was in for the ride.

The domestic challenge also included the Rokeby Stable-owned Virginia-bred Key to Content, who earned his way into the Million courtesy of a narrow defeat of Canada's Ben Fab in that year's GI United Nations S. at Atlantic City Racecourse. George Martens had the riding assignment for MacK Miller. Leslie Combs' Rossi Gold was the local hero, having won the GII Stars and Stripes H. and Swoon's Son H. prior to the Million, for which he was the 19-5 second choice in the wagering with Pat Day at the controls.

Four horses were lured from Europe for the Million, the best-backed of which was French-based Argument (Fr), that country's reigning champion 3-year-old, whose first trip to the States yielded a narrow victory in the 1980 GI Washington D.C. International S. at Laurel with Lester Piggott up. Winner of the 1981 G2 Prix d'Harcourt and G1 Prix Ganay, Argument was a 7-1 chance with Angel Cordero, Jr. in the irons.

Piggott had the call in the Million atop 3-year-old filly Madam Gay, one of three females in the field, who had won the 1981 G1 Prix de Diane ahead of a runner-up effort behind Shergar in the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond S. at Ascot.

In addition to the world-class riders already mentioned, the 1981 Million also featured jockeys named Delahoussaye, Samyn, Brumfield, Toro, Pincay Jr., Cauthen and Hawley. The stars had come to play, as hoped. And, as it turns out, the stars were aligned for a truly memorable two minutes and change of theater.

WATCH: John Henry noses out The Bart in Arlington Million I

A History-Making Day…

Broadcast by NBC to a worldwide audience in 27 countries, the Million was run on turf heavily affected by week-long rains. McAnally expressed some concern about the underfoot conditions, but John Sullivan, the trainer of 40-1 The Bart liked the way his charge had galloped over the track in the days leading up to the race.

Legendary track announcer Phil Georgeff exclaimed, “The flag is up,” as was his custom, and the inaugural Million field was sent on their way. Key to Content was kicked straight into the lead by Martens, but Eddie Delahoussaye asked The Bart to keep close to that one early and the duo had things mostly to themselves over the soggy going through a half-mile in :50 1/5. Shoemaker had John Henry positioned in about eighth spot with some cover as they turned up the backstretch. By the time they had reached the midway point, John Henry had found his way down to the inside as The Bart continued to hound Key to Content from the outside. Delahoussaye could wait no more and allowed The Bart to claim the pacesetter with a little more than 2 1/2 furlongs from home and set sail for the wire.

With Georgeff's trademark, “Here they come spinning out of the turn!” ringing through the grandstand, John Henry was finding his best stride and came out and around Madam Gay at the three-sixteenths pole with every chance if good enough. The Bart carried a clear advantage into the final eighth of a mile, boxed on gamely and looked to have the race won to the naked eye as John Henry came with one desperate final lunge. Georgeff was unwilling to call a winner, but NBC rolled the dice, declaring that The Bart had gotten the better of the photo. The picture told a different story and the Arlington Million was off to a flying start.

The 'Against All Odds' statue overlooking the Arlington paddock | Coady

“Right when we got about six jumps before the wire, I could see it was John Henry,” Delahoussaye told Thoroughbred Classics. “I looked out the corner of my eye, I knew who it was. I had a feeling if any horse was going to beat him, it was going to be him. I was right, unfortunately.”

For his part, Shoemaker wasn't convinced John Henry had gotten the better of the bob.

“Eddie was galloping out, I was trying to catch up with him, I was going to try to save $20,000 [of the purse money],” 'The Shoe' told Thoroughbred Classics. “I couldn't catch him.”

Shoemaker told the Associated Press after the win: “This is the greatest race I've ever ridden in. He's a great horse and this was a great field.” The finish of the inaugural Million is memorialized in the 'Against All Odds' statue that overlooks the Arlington paddock.

John Henry was upset in the 1983 Million by Tolomeo (Ire), but became the only two-time winner of the race with a more decisive victory in 1984.

The name has changed. The purse is now six figures, not seven. It figures to be the final renewal, sadly, at least at Arlington. But the memories of those 10 furlongs on that final Sunday of August now 40 years in the rear view will never be torn down.

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It is the latest chapter in a Hall of Fame career that has included wins with superstars like John Henry, Paseana and Bayakoa and three Eclipse Awards as the nation's top trainer but has fizzled out as McAnally has tried to deal with the prejudice owners seem to have when it comes to aging trainers. He is 88 and has been a part of the Southern California circuit since 1948. He has just six horses in his stable, five of which he owns. Since 2012, the most winners he has had in any single year is seven.

“The older you get, people don't want you,” he said. “They want a young trainer even if they don't have any experience. They won't choose an older trainer that has a lot of experience.”

But McAnally has not grown bitter. He is happy to still be training and says he enjoys every minute of it.

“I love being out here,” McAnally said last year. “It put me where I am, and I tell everybody, 'If you love something you're doing, it's not a job. People sit on the freeway five days a week and they can't wait till the weekend comes to get a couple of days off.”

And in Rock Your World he has a horse to follow and root for in this year's Triple Crown races, knowing that his fingerprints are all over this success story. He trained Rock Your World's sire, Candy Ride (Arg) and was the owner, breeder and trainer of his dam, Charm The Maker (Empire Maker). He also trained, owned and bred the colt's second and third dam.

“I give all the credit to the mare, Charm The Maker,” he said. “She has produced nothing but stakes horses and winners.”

McAnally's small stable includes She's Our Charm, the 5-year-old full sister to Rock Your World and the third-place finisher in the 2020 GIII Robert J. Frankel S. With Rock Your World, McAnally let him go through the ring at the 2019 Keeneland September sale, where he was bought for $650,000 and is now owned by the partnership of Hronis Racing LLC and Talla Racing LLC and trained by John Sadler.

“I thought the world of this colt,” McAnally said of Rock Your World. “I was in the stall with him before he sold.”

Looking back, McAnally wishes the horse didn't meet his reserve, which would have meant that he would still be his owner and trainer and, most likely, on his way back to Churchill Downs with a serious Derby contender.

“We didn't get to keep him. That's just the way life goes,” he said.

But he's happy with the way the story turned out.

“I have no regrets,” he said. “I've known John Sadler since he started off here many years ago working for a veterinarian. I've been friends with John for a long time. A couple of days after the Santa Anita Derby he came over to me at Clocker's Corner and I congratulated him and said he deserves a lot of credit because he has done a great job with this horse.”

McAnally's specialty was never young colts. Most of his major wins came with older horses and grass horses, but he did win the Arkansas Derby twice when it was a Grade II race. He won it in 1990 with Silver Ending and the following year with Olympio. He's also had a pair of winners in the GI Hollywood Futurity, with Valiant Nature in 1993 and with Matty G. in 1995. Starting with Super Moment in 1980, he has run 10 horses in the Kentucky Derby, the latest being Hello (Ire) in 1997. None have finished in the top three.

The problem, he says, is that he never came to Churchill Downs with the right horse.

“As I've told Bob Baffert a number of times, 'Just give me the horse.'” he said. “You are supposed to win when you have a horse like John Henry. A hotwalker could train a good horse. Everyone wants to get the credit when they win a big race. But I truly believe and will say for the rest of my life, you will never succeed if you don't have the right horse. If you don't have any good horses, you'll never do well.”

He hopes his next star is already in his barn. He owns and trains Rock Your World's full brother, a 2-year-old colt named He's Our Maker. He's not going to let this one get away and he's not going anywhere. Can he win the 2022 Derby as a trainer? You never know.

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Most recently second, beaten a diminishing head at 3-5 in the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap, United will again use the John Henry as a springboard to the Grade 1, 1 1/2-mile Breeders' Cup Turf at Keeneland, a race in which he was a close second to eventual Horse of the Year Bricks and Mortar last year at Santa Anita.

The Richard Baltas-trained Next Shares, a late running Grade 1 stakes winner, BG Stables' Originaire, who charged from far back to be a close third in the Del Mar Handicap and fellow Irish-bred Oscar Dominguez, a close fifth in the same race, lend considerable depth to the John Henry field.

The John Henry is named in honor of the legendary gelding who garnered seven Eclipse Awards and was voted America's Horse of the Year in 1981 and 1984. A Kentucky-bred gelding by Ole Bob Bowers, John Henry was trained by Hall of Famer Ron McAnally and was retired at age nine in 1984.

UNITED

Owner: LNJ Foxwoods

Trainer: Richard Mandella

Third in last year's John Henry, this 5-year-old Giant's Causeway gelding was subsequently a massive second, beaten a head by Bricks and Mortar at odds of 51-1 in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Turf, a race that he's once again prepping for. Although he was flying at the finish of the Aug. 22 Del Mar Handicap, the winner, Red King, had made an early run and was able to just prevail. A winner of three out of his four starts this year, United is in top form with an overall mark of 15-6-4-1 and earnings of $1,293,549.

NEXT SHARES

Owner: Richard & Debby Baltas and Michael Iavarone

Trainer: Richard Baltas

Back from Kentucky following a pair of unplaced starts in one mile turf stakes, including a 10th place finish two races back in the Grade I Makers Mark Mile at Keeneland July 10, Next Shares is a classy 7-year-old gelding that would appreciate a fast early pace. A solid second, beaten 2 ¼ lengths three starts back in the Grade I Shoemaker Mile (turf) here on May 25, he rallied well to be third, beaten a neck four starts back in the Grade I Frank E. Kilroe Mile (turf) on March 7. Although winless in five starts this year and “o-fer” in two tries at the mile and one quarter distance, Next Shares will hope to rebound on his home ground and will be ridden for the first time by top eastern rider Luis Saez. The leading money earner in the field with $1,808,571, he'll be making his 35th career start.

ORIGINAIRE

Owner: BG Stables

Trainer: Jeff Mullins

In what will be his fourth consecutive confrontation with United, this 4-year-old Irish-bred colt rates a legitimate upset chance. Most recently a fast finishing third, beaten a half length by United in the Del Mar Handicap, he was much closer to the pace in both the Grade II Eddie Read on July 26 and the Grade II Charles Whittingham Stakes here on May 23, races in which he was beaten 2 ¼ lengths and a half length by United, respectively. With Abel Cedillo set to ride him back for the second time, it would seem that Originaire's best chance for victory would be if he could again lag far off of a fast early pace.

OSCAR DOMINGUEZ

Owner: Nancy Messineo & Bruce Sands

Trainer: Richard Baltas

Another deep closer, “Oscar” was most recently a fast finishing fifth from far off the pace in the Del Mar Handicap Aug. 22, this 7-year-old Irish-bred gelding is winless in four graded starts this year, with his last win coming five races back in the Grade II, mile and one half Hollywood Turf Cup on Dec. 1, 2019. A winner of six out of his 41 career starts, he'll be ridden for the first time Jose Valdivia, Jr.

THE GRADE II JOHN HENRY WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS ON POST POSITION ORDER

Race 9 of 11 Approximate post time 4:30 p.m. PT

1. Proud Pedro—Juan Hernandez—122
2. Originaire—Abel Cedillo—122
3. United—Flavien Prat—126
4. Another Mystery—Drayden Van Dyke—122
5. Salvator Mundi—Umberto Rispoli—122
6. Kazan—Tiago Pereira—122
7. Next Shares—Luis Saez—124
8. Oscar Dominguez—Jose Valdivia, Jr.—124

First post time for an 11-race card on Saturday is at 12:30 p.m. Although there is no public admittance, fans can follow a live video stream, free of charge, at santaanita.com

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In addition to a main residence and guest house, the property includes five barns with one-hundred stalls, a HydroHorse aqua-

tread, and six-horse Kraft hotwalker. The farm’s neighbors include Claiborne Farm, Coolmore America’s Creekview Farm, Godolphin’s Stonerside Farm, Stone Farm, and Xalapa.

“Kirkpatrick & Co. is deeply honored by the confidence of our client,” said the agency’s president and principal broker Zach Davis, who has the listing. “It’s always a pleasure to offer a farm with such provenance, but because this year is the 50th anniversary of its Derby victory, it’s doubly-special.”

The farm has been listed at $3,725,000.

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His father was good friends with Eduardo Inda, the right-hand man for Hall of Fame trainer Ron McAnally and an integral part of the team that campaigned John Henry to the Hall of Fame as well.

“So I was able to be around John Henry quite a bit,” Cosato said. “I've got pictures with me and John Henry before and after he won the Santa Anita Handicap in 1982. John Henry was my lifelong favorite – until Beau Recall came along. For her to be at that level, in my mind, speaks volumes.”

Beau Recall, a 6-year-old Irish-bred mare, is the defending champion in Saturday's $150,000, Grade II Yellow Ribbon Handicap at Del Mar, a 1 1/16-mile turf test for older fillies and mares which will be run for the 68th time.

“It was a lengthy inquiry for something I didn't think merited being brought up in the first place,” Cosato recalled. “But in the end, the stewards' decision was the one we were hoping for.”

The Yellow Ribbon was one of three victories and three runner-up efforts in a six-race 2019 campaign for Beau Recall that accounted for $605,600 of her `more than $1.1 million in career earnings. The Yellow Ribbon was her second Grade II victory of the year, coming three months after a 10-1 upset in the Distaff Turf Mile, which gave Cosato and partners the thrill and prestige of going to the winner's circle before 150,729 spectators at Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby Day.

Cosato doesn't favor one over the other. He savors both.

“Any time you win one of those big races it's just a complete blessing,” Cosato, who grew up in Temple City and now lives in Sierra Madre, said. “Nothing beats winning at home, and I'm a Californian who has been coming to Del Mar since I was a kid.”

Beau Recall has raced twice in 2020. She finished ninth of 14, albeit beaten only 2 ¼ lengths, in the Mint Julep at Churchill Downs on May 30 and second in the Grade I Just a Game Stakes at Belmont Park on June 27.

“Her comeback race (Mint Julep) turned out to be nothing more than a workout,” Cosato said. “She never had room to run, never got to unleash the late kick that makes her so good.”

In the Just a Game, Beau Recall's late charge came up three lengths short against front-running Newspaperofrecord but a half length ahead of Uni, winner of the 2018 Matriarch Stakes at Del Mar and an Eclipse Award as the top female turf runner last year.

Beau Recall prevailed over five rivals, among them multiple stakes-winning Vasilika, in the 2019 Yellow Ribbon. There are seven others entered Saturday, among them Jolie Olimpica, winner of two graded turf sprints at Santa Anita this year and Keeper Ofthe Stars, who took the Grade I Gamely in May.

Beau Recall may carry the colors of Slam Dunk – a name Cosato chose because of the many friends/clients he has with NBA or college basketball backgrounds – but a victory Saturday is nowhere near such a high percentage opportunity.

“It's a tough race,” Cosato conceded. “We're trying to get her a Grade I win, but for that at a mile, you'd almost have to run against the boys. Timing-wise, the Yellow Ribbon is right and we're hoping it works out for her again.”

The field from the rail: Summering (Drayden Van Dyke, 12-1); Bodhicitta (Flavien Prat, 6-1); Tonahutu (Victor Espinoza, 15-1); Lady Prancelot (Juan Hernandez, 5-1); Harmless (Ricardo Gonzalez, 15-1); Keeper Ofthe Stars (Abel Cedillo, 7-2); Beau Recall (Umberto Rispoli, 3-1), and Jolie Olimpica (Mike Smith, 5-2).

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