The 2025 Kentucky Derby was really something special. It had some top-notch trainers, like Bob Baffert, who was back at Churchill Downs after sitting out for three years. The 72-year-old trainer was hoping for a fairytale comeback with a touch of redemption, but he ended up feeling disappointed when his horse, Citizen Bull, ridden by Martin Garcia, came in fifteenth at the Kentucky Derby.

Yeah, Citizen Bull was in the lead for quite a while, but as they hit the final stretch, the colt just couldn’t keep up and slipped back, missing the chance to challenge the front runners. Did you know that every horse that took part in the 151st Kentucky Derby is actually related to the legendary stallion Secretariat? Pretty interesting, right? Even so, these descendants of Secretariat didn’t manage to break one of his records either.

On X, the official NBC Sports account posted, “52 years ago today, Secretariat won the Kentucky Derby in 1:59.40, a record that STILL stands today!” So, on May 5, 1973, Secretariat really wowed everyone at the 99th Kentucky Derby. He finished the 1 1/4-mile race at Churchill Downs in an incredible time of 1:59.40, which is still a record more than fifty years later!

During the race, Secretariat really picked up speed with each quarter-mile, showing off an amazing combination of speed and stamina. With this win, he kicked off his amazing Triple Crown journey, going on to take the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes and breaking records in all three races.

So, even though Bob Baffert’s Citizen Bull had some ties to that legendary stallion, the colt’s pace just didn’t cut it to break the record or snag the win in the race. But where does this renowned pedigree even begin to link the horse?

Bob Baffert’s colt’s connection with Secretariat

At first, Bob Baffert had three horses prepared for the Kentucky Derby out of the 20 candidates. The 72-year-old trainer’s only chance, however, was Citizen Bull after Madaket Road’s switch to the Pat Day Mile Stakes and Rodriguez’s injury.

As a descendant of the renowned racehorse Secretariat via his sire line, the colt was a leading contender in the 151st Kentucky Derby. His sire, Into Mischief, comes from Storm Cat. Storm Cat is a well-known son of Terlingua, one of Secretariat’s daughters. According to this ancestry, Citizen Bull is a sixth-generation descendant of Secretariat, having been his great-great-great-grandfather.

The legendary stallion’s pedigree continues to have an impact on contemporary Thoroughbred racing, as shown by the fact that all of the horses competing in this year’s Run for the Roses were supposedly descended from him.