There was sad news from the world of horse racing on Sunday as it was reported that D. Wayne Lukas of Antigo, Wisconsin passed away at the age of 89 according to Harrison Smith of The Washington Post. Lukas, who passed away in the iconic horse racing city of Louisville, Kentucky (host of the Kentucky Derby), died of a severe Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) infection. Lukas was the winning trainer for 15 Triple Crown races. His horses won four Kentucky Derby titles, seven Preakness Stakes and four Belmont Stakes.
Kentucky Derby Titles
Lukas won his first Kentucky Derby training Winning Colors in 1988. Winning Colors was famous for being one of only three fillies to win the Kentucky Derby (the others were Regret in 1913 and Genuine Risk in 1980). Lukas’s second Kentucky Derby title came in 1995 with Thunder Gulch. It was one of two Triple Crown races for Thunder Gulch as he also won the 1995 Belmont Stakes. Thunder Gulch was unable to win all three Triple Crown races in 1995, as he finished behind champion Timber Country and runner-up Oliver Twist. Lukas’s third Kentucky Derby title came in 1996 along Grindstone, and his fourth Kentucky Derby came training Charismatic in 1999. Like Thunder Gulch, Charismatic won two Triple Crown races. Charismatic also won the Preakness in 1999, but failed to win the Triple Crown, as he finished third at the Belmont, behind champion Lemon Drop Kid and runner-up Vision and Verse.
Preakness Titles
As mentioned, Lukas won the 1999 Preakness with Charismatic. His other six Preakness titles came training Codex in 1980, Tank’s Prospect in 1985, Tabasco Cat in 1994, Timber Country in 1995, Oxbow in 2013, and Seize the Grey in 2024. It should be noted that Lukas won the Triple Crown as a trainer in 1995 (training Timber Country and Thunder Gulch), and was 88 years old when Seize the Grey won the 2024 Preakness Stakes. Timber Country was the first horse to win the Breeders Cup juvenile and a Triple Crown race.
Belmont Stakes
When Tabasco Cat won the 1994 Belmont, the horse won two of the three Triple Crown races. The only Triple Crown race Tabasco Cat did not win in 1994 was the Kentucky Derby, which was won by Go for Gin. Tabasco Cat finished sixth at Churchill Downs. In addition to training Thunder Gulch to the 1995 title, Lukas trained Editor’s Note to a win in 1996 and Commendable in 2000.
