Silky Sullivan

Silky Sullivan
Celebrating Silky's birthday on St. Patrick's Day with Kjell Qvale
Sire	Sullivan
Dam	Lady N Silk
Damsire	Ambrose Light
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	1955
Country	USA
Colour	Chestnut
Breeder	Mr. & Mrs. Riley Roberts
Owner	Phil Klipstein Tom Ross
Trainer	Reggie Cornell
Record	27: 12-1-5
Earnings	$157,700
Major wins
Golden Gate Futurity (making up 27 lengths) (1957) Santa Anita Derby (making up 28 lengths) (1958)
Honours
First horse buried in the infield at Golden Gate Fields. He has since been joined by Lost in the Fog The Silky Sullivan Handicap at Golden Gate Fields The Silky Sullivan Award given to the top three-year-old male (Buddy Gil in 2003))
Last updated on August 21, 2011

Silky Sullivan (February 28, 1955 – November 18, 1977) was an American thoroughbred race horse best known for his come-from-behind racing style. His name is now a term used in sports and politics for someone who seems so far behind the competition that they cannot win, yet they do.

There were other great closers—Whirlaway, Stymie, Needles, Gallant Man, Carry Back, Forego, Zenyatta, and Alydar—but none could hang so far back, let the field get so far ahead, and still win. Called the "California Comet" and often ridden by Hall of Fame jockey Willie Shoemaker, Silky Sullivan once fell 41 lengths behind the field yet still won by three lengths, running the last quarter in 22 seconds. His trainer, West Coast veteran Reggie Cornell, said "I've never seen a horse in my life, or heard of one either, go faster." Cornell trained horses for movie star Betty Grable and her husband, bandleader Harry James. He was the uncle and mentor of Hall-of-Famer Ron McAnally, who trained John Henry. Willie Shoemaker once said of Silky Sullivan, "You can't do a thing with him, you just have to allow him to run his own race, at his own speed, in his own style in the first quarter or maybe the first three eighths. And you just sit there and wait, hoping you won't have to wait too long, because when he really gets going you have to be alert or he might just leave you behind—and then you hold on for dear life". Of his 27 career starts, he was in the money 18 times with 12 wins, 1 place, and 5 shows. His career earnings were $157,700 (purses were smaller in the mid-1950s).