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If you search for ‘
horseracing’s biggest upsets’ on Google you’ll find articles with the usual strong American bias, with a host of sources accepting that all the major upsets of the last millennium occurred in the United States. This is some way off the mark, because history shows that a range of shock results were posted in many other parts of the world over time, and in different racing jurisdictions.
There really is no way any researcher can list them in order of ‘shock value’ as the horses that won meant different things to different punters and connections at the time and those who supported the various outsiders in the betting would not have been upset at all. But below are a few notable shocks delivered around the world, and perhaps best remembered due to the media coverage received.
Nando Parrado, winner of the 2020 G2 Coventry Stakes at 150-1
This race, a part of the Royal Ascot Festival, remains the historic meeting’s biggest-priced winner to this very day. Anyone who did back him would have gone home very happy – but probably not as happy as Nando Parrado’s trainer, Clive Cox and jockey Adam Kirby. Most punters were shell-shocked.
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Arcangues, winner of the 1993 G1 Breeders’ Cup Classic at 133-1
Arcangues spent his earliest racing days on various turf tracks in France, where he won several graded stakes—including the prestigious Prix d’Ispahan (Group I) at Longchamp—for his French owner, art dealer Daniel Wildenstein. His American jockey Jerry Bailey reportedly had trouble understanding the last-minute instructions offered by Arcangues’ French trainer, Andre Fabre. Bailey didn’t know how to pronounce the name of the horse either. It was ‘AR-KONG.’ Bailey offered: “Heck, I didn’t know. My fluency in French consists of speaking English in a Pepé Le Pew accent, as in ‘Ah shoot you wiz zee ack-ack of luv.’ Still, for Arcangues, 1993 was the year when everyone would say his name. Correctly and with respect.
Prince of Penzance, winner of the 2015 Melbourne Cup at 100-1
So obviously the main part of this shock win is that it was a female jockey, Michelle Payne, who won. Payne became the first female jockey to ever win the Cup in the 154-year history of the Melbourne Cup. Even more remarkable was that she won the Cup on a steed named Prince of Penzance, a 100-1 roughie.
Lashkari, winner of the 1984 G1 Breeders’ Cup Turf in 1984 at 53-1
The UK-bred Lashkari, owned by the Aga Khan, raced mostly in France, came to the US with jockey Yves Saint-Martin and trainer Alain De Royer Dupre. Having won a Group 2 race in France, he had some street cred, but in the US, French street cred means little, and thus Lashkari entered the starting gate at 53/1. He won by a neck.
Mine That Bird, winner of the 2009 G1 Kentucky Derby at 50-1
The upset by Mine That Bird in the 2009 Kentucky Derby, with long odds of 50-1, is the second record for longest odds to ever win the Kentucky Derby. Mine That Bird was so far under the radar as a possible winner that the race caller only picked him up late in the contest, when jockey Calvin Borel utilised his favourite move, which is cutting the rail and giving himself a clear path to the finish line. They won by 6,25-lengths. Borel’s thrilling ride even inspired a movie, named after Mine That Bird.
Upset, winner of the 1919 Sandford Memorial Stakes at unknown long odds
The most well-known surprise win in racing, by popular opinion, was the shock defeat of Man O’ War, the horse considered to be the greatest racer ever, to the lesser known but still impressive horse, ironically called ‘Upset’. Upset, a top racer himself, will forever be known as the only horse to ever beat the legendary Man O’ War.
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