Sim Trainer Stats
Sim Race Stats
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LEX LUTHOR
2003 horse, (Empire Maker x Theatrical x Seeking the Gold)
Owner/Trainer: galileo
Record: 48-23-7-5; $8,529,666
Win:Breeders' Bowl Turf-G1, Ark De Triumph-G1, Derby De English-G1, Japan Cup-G1, Owner's S-G1, Tower Bridge-G1, Coronation Cup-G1, Prometheus-G1, Cold Plate-G2, Slow Tree Special-G3, Zig Zag Connection Memorial S, Just Eric S, Icy Code S, Their Dances Challenge, Cadmus Project S, The Luthor Corp. Ares S, The Luthor Corp. 33.1 S, The Luthor Corp. Omega S, The Luthor Corp. Alpha S, Blazing Saddles Breeders' Showdown, Smackdown II S
Place:Breeders' Bowl Turf-G1, Ark De Triumph-G1, Sydney Derby-G1, At Night Cup-G2, Quest for Gold II Special
Show:King Geoff and Queen Beth's Emerald S-G1, Reading is Fun-G1, The Carlsbad Lessons-G2
Lex Luthor was arguably Superman's greatest challenge, a villain with no particular superpowers, just a whole lot of smarts and cunning. It is appropriate that a colt named Lex Luthor would rise to the top of the turf router division, a hero to his fans, but most definitely a villain to his rivals, who would watch him steal race after race on the front end. Make no mistake though, Lex Luthor did not win these races merely through smart riding, but rather through a combination of blazing speed and the stamina to carry it a route of ground. Somewhat ironically, there is a horse named Superman in the game, but he was winless in nine starts.
Lex Luthor often plotted to gain world domination, which fits well with his bloodlnes - by Empire Maker, with Theatrical and Seeking the Gold also in his pedigree.
It would prove to be a bumper crop for galileo, who also had Wicked Wench (future winner of the Oaks de English and Adelaide Oaks) and future G2 winner Giantsbane waiting in the wings. At two, though, Lex Luthor showed flashes of potential, placing twice in two tries on the dirt, then finishing second in his turf debut, before rounding out the year by breaking his maiden going one mile on the lawn with a respectable 86 SF. It was on the turf that the colt began to establish his desire to go to the front and play catch me if you can. For a colt bred to run all day, it was a decent beginning.
It would be nine long weeks between starts, but Lex Luthor made his seasonal debut in a GR Simsters residency stakes, the Thoroughbred Trials, going 9 1/2 furlongs on the turf. Despite the colt's front running tendencies, the extra ground looked like it was right up his alley, pedigree-wise. The big bay showed that he could be rated, sitting a close second in the early going, then simply outran everyone else to the wire, ending up a widening 6 3/4 lengths in front. Future G2 winner Zanzabar (who was at his best at a mile), would finish second. Unfortunately, the wheels came off in a G1 stakes five weeks later. Lex Luthor broke in a tangle, and proceeded to run like Superman weighted down with kryptonite. It was back to the drawing board, and so Galileo patiently took a step backwards, sponsoring an 11 furlong stakes for his promising colt instead of continuing to throw him into the deep end. Lex Luthor responded with a wire to wire victory and a 96 SF. With that confidence booster under his belt, the big bay was off to Australia and the G1 Sydney Derby. The bettors sent him off at 10/1, not sure whether he could handle the class test, while others pointed to his front running style as a possible negative. Instead, the role of favorite went to Creepshow, a gold medallist in the Equinics and riding a three race win streak at the G1 level. As it turned out, Cortez, another Equinics gold medallist, and the second choice in the betting, came away with the win after stalking Lex Luthor in the early going. Lex Luthor still impressed though, finishing a game second with a 99 SF. Dropped back down to an ungraded stakes, which would become a pattern in the colt's racing schedule, Lex Luthor came away with the easy win, and would head to Epsom for a rematch with Cortez in the Derby De English-G1. This time, it was no contest. The son of Empire Maker established his claim to the title of best 3yo turf router as he seized the lead and never looked back. The lead extended from one length to three, to 6 1/2, which he maintained to the wire under a hand ride. At no point did the jockey break out the win. Good to Be King, third in the Sydney Derby, would finish a best of the rest second, while Cortez had to settle for fourth. It would be on to Smackdown, one of the biggest days of the GR Simsters residency, and Lex Luthor was there to try to bring home the spoils of war and bragging rights to his connections. The rest of the field simply was not in his class, and it would be another dazzling win for the colt. Next stop was a rubber match with Cortez in the G1 Owner's Stakes. The betting public collectively threw up their hands, making the two rivals co-favorites. Lex Luthor would rate second for the first several furlongs (interestingly enough, the pace setter was a future G1 winner named Director, who sported the same Empire Maker x Theatrical cross as Lex), before showing that once again, the race was no contest, running off to an easy 4 length romp. Director would hang on for second, just holding off the furiously closing Cortez. After another easy score in a nongraded prep, Lex Luthor was deemed ready to take on his elders for the first time, in the prestigious Ark De Triumph-G1. The heavy favorite was hall of famer Horseshoe Bay, who was following up his sensational 3yo campaign with another dominant season at four. Lex Luthor gave it his best, opening up by 7 1/2 at the top of the stretch, but couldn't quite hold off Horseshoe Bay, and had to settle for second, beaten 3 1/4 lengths. There was no shame in the loss; very few horses could be Horseshoe Bay in his prime. Lex Luthor would give it another go in the Breeders' Bowl Turf-G1, and the result is the same. This time, the big bay had a nearly 10 length lead, but could not hold off Horseshoe Bay, but was clearly the best of the rest, with Cortez once again making a late run for third. The big bay had gone from maiden winner, to multiple G1 winner and Breeders' Bowl placed over a long season, and in the process, had captured quite a fan base, who loved to see his catch me if you can style of racing. As Galileo would say, "There's no better feeling than having a fast horse, the best horse, on the front end. You might get beat a few times, but great horses make their own luck." It had been a long season, but Galileo decided to go to the well one more time, sending his colt to Japan, where he would face hall of famer Sunnybank Memorial, who at age five, was not quite at his prime (which only meant that he was still better than most of the other horses in his division), who was looking to redeem himself after a poor outing in the Breeders' Bowl. The older rival did manage a much better effort, but it wasn't good enough to defeat Lex Luthor, who simply won for fun, opening up by almost 10 at the head of the stretch, and winning by more than six without his jockey doing anything more than sitting chilly. It was the sort of ride where the horse makes the rider look good. With that performance, Lex Luthor underscored why he was the best in his division, a fact recognized by the voters, who awarded him the title of Champion 3yo Turf Colt.
After a hard campaign, the big bay was given a well-deserved freshening, taking seven weeks off before returning to the racing wars. The return was a major disappointment and a rare poor outing on the part of the champ. The horse stumbled at the gate, and never showed any interest. Galileo rolled up his sleeves and started cranking the colt back up. Lex responded with an easy win in an ungraded stakes, then stepped back up in style, taking the G3 Slow Tree Stakes in speedy fashion over the classy Jupiter's Moons, posting a 104 SF in a wire to wire romp. The champ was back. Next came the Coronation Cup-G1, which featured another match up with Sunnybank Memorial. Once again, Lex Luthor dashed out of the gate and never looked back, opening up by nine at one point, and coasting home almost five lengths in front, and was never threatened. The bay wheeled back four weeks later at the same track in the G1 Tower Bridge, and the result was much the same, another easy win, another 109 SF. The only thing that really was different was the absence of Memo. The next step was another one of the top European races, the King Geoff and Queen Beth's Emerald Stakes-G1. Longshot Arcadia Jack hung stubbornly with the champ in the early fractions, setting up the race for a deep closer. Jumpin' Java, who had won the G1 John Scott Appreciation earlier that year, fit the bill, and capitalized on the pace scenario, while Lex somewhat surprisingly, faded to third. The speed figure was a bit slower than in his earlier starts. Whether it was the pace, or the champ was simply due for a bounce, was not entirely clear. Galileo went back to the tried and true, and as usual, Lex Luthor dropped back into an ungraded stakes, which he won. The speed figure wasn't bad, but it wasn't the norm either, so there were some concerns when the bay rolled into town for the Ark De Triumph-G1, a race he had finished second in the year before. The field included Rapid Grey, who had been on a G1 winning tear of his own, Rainband, who was starting to make a name for himself as a turf router, after spending most of his career sprinting, and graded stakes winners Good to Be King and Cache, a classy mare. It didn't matter. The only thing Lex Luthor was running against was the clock, rolling to a four length lead, then seven, then 11. The jock wrapped up on his charge in the final quarter, and was completely geared down, which was still good enough for an emphatic four length score and a 109 SF. Galileo had to be happy with this pre-Breeders' Bowl effort. And so, three weeks later, on a cold October day, Galileo and his colt hoped to go one better in the Breeders' Bowl Turf-G1. Favoritism went to Horseshoe Bay, who was looking for a third straight win in the race, but Lex was the clear second choice. As the gates open, the bay broke cleanly, and went to the front, with Ottoman Turks just off his flanks. The two set steady, but sensible fractions, and so had plenty left when the real running started. Lex shook off his early challenger, and the closers were simply left with too much to do. Lex Luthor came home with the Breeders' Bowl Turf honors, with a sterling 111 SF in the process. Horseshoe Bay was a game third, but was still almost four lengths behind his younger rival. Galileo would give his charge two more starts for the year, an easy recovery effort in an ungraded stakes, where the colt coasted home the easiest of winners, and then to DelPenn Champions Day. While Lex Luthor gave a gutsy effort, and was hardly disgraced, posting a 107 SF, it just was not good enough. The colt faded in the stretch to finish fourth, with fellow simster Rosenthal posting a mild upset at odds of 8-1. While the season ended on a somewhat sour note, it was still a great campaign, and the voters once again recognized Lex Luthor and his connections with the title of Champion Older Turf Horse, making it back to back championship seasons.
The bay stallion kicked off his five year old season with a pair of ungraded stakes wins in fast time (108 SF, 101 SF), but then seemed to struggle. A trip to Dubai for the Sand Castle Golden Turf Classic-G1 resulted in a disastrous 11th place finish. The vet shook his head when Lex returned to the barn, and it would be 10 long weeks before he would return to the track. It was only an allowance, but again the colt struggled, never hitting the front, and passing tired horses in the stretch to finish third. It was a definite shock; something was still wrong. An ungraded stakes went badly. Finally, six starts in, things started to turn around. The colt showed his customary early spark, and hung in there to finish a game second in an ungraded stakes. The Equinics rolled around, and Lex stepped it up, managing to grab the bronze medal with a 109 SF. Was the champ finally back? Two fourth place finishes left things just as confused as ever. The colt would win a restricted stakes in the Blazing Saddles Breeders' Showdown, and finish the year out with a second place effort in the At Night Cup-G2. It had been a year with many ups and downs, and Galileo decided to give his prized stallion one more season, in the hopes that the ups would continue.
Lex Luthor's six year old campaign began well, with an easy win in an ungraded stakes at 13 furlongs (with a 106 SF), and a similar result in the Prometheus-G1, which was restricted to 6yos and up. Despite the restriction, the race had attracted another G1 winning son of Empire Maker, Strong Belwas, who dogged Lex Luthor every step of the way, and was just 3/4 of a length behind the champion at the wire. Lex Luthor completed the hattrick by winning the Cold Plate-G2 in another wire to wire effort. He would finally taste defeat for the first time in 2009 when he couldn't quite carry his speed the final furlong, and had to settle for third. For whatever reason, the mileage, the wear and tear, or what have you, after that effort, the wheels simply came off, both from a speed figure perspective and a performance perspective. Even a drop to allowance company, in what would prove to be his final performance, could not do the trick, and so Galileo would retire his stable star, although he would wait until 2010 to make the retirement official.
Lex Luthor would retire with two championships, eight grade one victories, and over $8,500,000 in earnings, good enough to make him twelfth on the all-time earning list (as of this writing). His combination of class and speed made him popular with fans, unpopular with his rivals, and respected by both. His induction into the Hall of Fame is well-deserved.
As of this writing, Lex Luthor's son by Sea the Stars, Hellblazer, is unplaced in two starts on the turf, but it is too early to read too much into that.
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