Leamington (horse)

Leamington
Leamington from Wallace's Monthly Magazine, July 1877
Sire	Faugh-a-Ballagh
Grandsire	Sir Hercules
Dam	Pantaloon Mare (14) (1841)
Damsire	Pantaloon
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	1853
Country	Great Britain
Colour	Brown
Breeder	Mr. Halford
Owner	Mr. Higgins
Record	25 starts, 8 places
Earnings	₤8,790
Major wins
Woodcote Stakes (1855) Chesterfield Stakes (1855) Stewards' Cup (1856) Goodwood Stakes (1857) Chester Cup (1857 & 1859)
Awards
Leading sire in North America (1875, 1877, 1879, 1881)
Last updated on 1 August 2011

Leamington (1853–1878) was a Thoroughbred racehorse, and an influential sire in the United States during the second half of the nineteenth century. He was not only a fast horse, but also showed great staying ability.

He was a brown horse bred in England by Mr. Halford. Leamington was by the good racehorse and sire Faugh-a-Ballagh (by Sir Hercules), his dam was an unnamed mare bred by the Marquis of Westminster and foaled in 1841 by Pantaloon.

Halford began racing him at age two, and then sold him to a Mr. Higgins. Leamington won the Woodcote Stakes at Warwick and the Chesterfield Stakes, before being retired for the year.

As a three-year-old, it was planned to run the colt in The Derby, but he contracted strangles, and this affected his whole three-year-old season. However, his owners and trainers appeared to have planned his losses to help keep his handicap weight down. After losing four small races carrying little weight, he won the Wolverhampton, before his losing several more. He was then "allowed" to win the Stewards' Cup carrying only 98 lb (44 kg).

His four-year-old career began with the 2.25 mile Chester Cup. Leamington only carried 93 lb (42 kg), due to his poor reputation gained as a three-year-old, and he easily won the race. The colt then came fourth at the Ascot Gold Cup. He went on to the Goodwood Stakes, carrying only 118 lb (53.5 kg) with odds of 100 to 3, and easily won the race by a length. His owners won quite a bit of money from wagering on him that day, after their longshot with 100 to 3 odds beat out a field of 19. However, his win earned him top weight of 131 lb (59 kg) at his next race, the Chesterfield Cup, and he could not hold out.

Leamington ran once at the age of five. He carried 130 lb (59 kg), as the handicapper realized how the horse's owners had been manipulating his races. The weight was too much to carry, and Leamington could not win here either.

He had a successful start to his six-year-old career, however, winning the Chester Cup easily against a good field. He finished second in his next race, the Gold Vase at Ascot, but his final race of the season, the Goodwood Cup, left him with an injury to his right foreleg.