Horse racing has its legends. In horse racing, Triple Crown is one of the most prestigious feats to accomplish. In 1978, there never been a Triple Crown winner that one back to back. Affirmed went into the history books and provided a new record set.
Affirmed and competitor Alydar rivalry was the biggest part about this event. They met first during the Youthful Stakes, in 1977. Affirmed came out the winner. These 2 year olds slugged it out, in almost every other race thereafter.
In California, Affirmed won all four starts, earlier in 1978 and it set the stage for the three Triple Crown Races. In the final stretch both Affirmed and Alydar made a push but Affirmed came out on top.
The next race was just as breathtaking, with Affirmed coming into the race on top but slowly getting pressure from Alydar. The last race of the Triple Crown happened at the Belmont Stakes, three years later.
He two horses were already running about neck and neck with Affirmed in first place, after a half mile into the race. Affirmed secured his Triple Crown victory and the crowd cheered. Affirmed had just enough left in him to come out on top yet again, although Alydar took the initial lead down the stretch.
It was at the Travers Stakes in Saratoga where Alydar and Affirmed only raced each other one more time. For interfering with Alydar earlier in the race, Affirmed was later disqualified even though, Affirmed won this race. His following performances resulted in two more losses but he still won Horse of the Year for his incredible accomplishments. Every horse trainer is hoping that their mares will compare at some point just as Affirmed, who had an incredible run during his career