Her resulting foal of 1879 was a chestnut colt, subsequently gelded, with a white sock on his left hind leg.
[2] On May 16, Apollo entered the 1882 Kentucky Derby, then run at a distance of 1+1⁄2 miles, as part of a field of fourteen.
The 4-5 favorite was Runnymede, a multiple stakes winner, while Apollo was grouped with two other horses as a field entry at 10–1.
However, Apollo closed with a "cyclonic rush" and caught up in the final strides, winning by half a length.
[2][3][5] The two horses met up again just six days later in the Clark Stakes, with Runnymede winning "in a canter" while Apollo finished third.
[7] Apollo had a solid season himself, winning a total of ten races from 21 starts and only finishing out of the money once.
[2][3] As a four-year-old in 1883, Apollo started 30 times, winning fourteen of them, including the Merchant Stakes.