Young Eclipse
| Young Eclipse | |
|---|---|
| Sire | Eclipse |
| Grandsire | Marske |
| Dam | Juno |
| Damsire | Spectator |
| Sex | Stallion |
| Foaled | 1778 |
| Country | Kingdom of Great Britain |
| Colour | Bay |
| Breeder | Dennis O'Kelly |
| Owner | Dennis O'Kelly |
| Trainer | Not recorded |
| Record | 13:7-1-2 (incomplete) |
| Major wins | |
| Epsom Derby (1781) | |
Young Eclipse (1778 – c. 1803) was a Thoroughbred racehorse that won the 1781 Epsom Derby. He raced until he was six years old, winning seven races and retiring to stud in 1785. He was not a successful sire.
Young Eclipse was foaled in 1778 and was bred by Dennis O'Kelly, who owned his sire Eclipse and stood him at his Clay Hill Stud farm near Epsom for a 50-guinea per mare stud fee. O'Kelly was an Irish immigrant who had made his fortune through professional gambling, Eclipse's stud fees and the profits of a brothel run by his lover Charlotte Hayes. Eclipse was undefeated during his racing career, winning 18 races, and is the foundation sire from which most modern Thoroughbreds descend. Young Eclipse's dam, Juno (foaled in 1764), was bred by the Duke of Ancaster and produced nine foals between 1772 and her death in 1793. Young Eclipse was her sixth and most notable foal.
Young Eclipse was considered "fleeter" than his sire at distances less than three miles and reportedly was ill-tempered and "what the jockeys call rusty."
Young Eclipse was trained "privately" at Epsom and the name of his trainer was not recorded. Young Eclipse won seven races during his career and raced mostly at Newmarket. His most important win was in the 1781 Derby. He retired to stud in 1785 after he injured a fetlock during his last race.
The second Derby Stakes was run on 24 May 1781 with a field of thirteen horses. The betting favorite was John Lade's colt Crop at odds of 5 to 4 with odds on Young Eclipse at 10 to 1. Young Eclipse won the race, with Crop finishing second and Prince of Orange third. On 31 May at Epsom, he lost two £50 two-mile heats to the colt Laburnum. At the October Meeting at Newmarket, Young Eclipse received an unspecified forfeiture from a filly sired by Sweetwilliam.
Young Eclipse won a match race against the horse Blush at Newmarket. Young Eclipse did not place in the Claret Stakes, the race being won by the colt Crop and the second-place finisher Regent receiving "two hogsheads of claret" from Crop's owner. On 20 June, Young Eclipse was fourth in a sweepstakes race which was won by the colt Arske. He received 50-guineas forfeiture from the colt Fox at Epsom and a 100-guinea forfeiture from Orando at Newmarket in October. Young Eclipse was third in a 60-guinea Purse race, losing to the filly Dido and the colt Flamer.
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