Ghostzapper (foaled April 6, 2000) is a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Breeders' Cup Classic in 2004, outdistancing Roses in May by three lengths in a track record time of 1:59.02.
His gate-to-wire Classic victory completed a 4-for-4 season, which earned him the 2004 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year.
Awesome Again became a successful sire, with 61 stakes winners to his credit as of the end of 2015, including Game On Dude, Ginger Punch, Oxbow and Paynter.
[3] Ghostzapper is a somewhat plain bay horse whose main distinguishing mark is a diamond shaped star on his forehead.
Although a fierce competitor on the racetrack, he was quiet and well mannered at the stable and spent much of his spare time sleeping in his stall.
He was widely considered to be one of the most brilliant horses of his era, but his career was plagued by ailments that restricted him to only eleven starts from age two to five.
[1] As was then his habit, he raced well behind the early pace before closing rapidly to finish third, just a half-length behind the winner, Valid Video.
After trailing the field early, he unleashed a "devastating" burst of speed and pulled away to win by 6+1⁄2 lengths.
This time, he stayed close behind the early leaders and then moved to the lead on the far turn, drawing off to win by 4+1⁄4 lengths.
"[10] To test Ghostzapper's stamina, Frankel entered him in the Philip H. Iselin Breeders' Cup Handicap at Monmouth Park Racetrack on August 21 over a distance of 1+1⁄8 miles.
[11] He earned an astonishing 128 Beyer Speed rating, the highest ever assigned by the Daily Racing Form since they started publishing the numbers in 1992.
Saint Liam, ridden by Edgar Prado, set the early pace then dug in during the stretch as Ghostzapper tried to close ground.
"[14] His final race of 2004 was the Breeders' Cup Classic at Lone Star Park, run over a distance of 1+1⁄4 miles.
Another issue was trainer Bobby Frankel's poor record at the Breeders' Cup despite consistently training some of the best horses in the country.
And then there was the fact that Ghostzapper drew post position one and risked getting trapped on the rail in heavy traffic.
Ghostzapper would have to break fast to keep from getting trapped on the rail, and Roses in May was the only other horse in the race with the speed to challenge him early.
Accordingly, Frankel talked to the owner of Roses in May, Ken Ramsey, and said "If we lay first and second and the jockeys keep them slow and don't kill each other trying for the lead, they'll finish one-two.
[16] Ghostzapper justified the confidence of his connections and led the entire way, pulling away in the stretch to a three-length victory over Roses in May.
And Dick Jerardi wrote, "Ghostzapper is officially the fastest horse since Daily Racing Form began publishing Beyer Speed Figures in 1992.
[4] Ghostzapper was also named as the world's top ranked racehorse by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) with a rating of 130.
"[21] He finally made his 2005 debut on May 30 in the Metropolitan Handicap (more commonly known as the Met Mile) at Belmont Park.
After settling into third place in the early running, he moved to the lead on the far turn and pulled away to win by 6+1⁄2 lengths.
"[22] Ghostzapper was retired from racing on June 13, 2005, after the discovery of a hairline fracture of his left front sesamoid bone.
[26] In October 2024, John G. Sikura, owner of Hill 'n' Dale announced that Ghostzapper will reunite with Frank Stronach's Adena Springs and will cover a limited book in 2025.
c = colt, f = filly, g = gelding In recent years, Ghostzapper has also found success as a broodmare sire.
[30] Internationally, Ghostzapper's daughter Ghostly Darkness produced colt Levante Lion, winner of the Hakodate Nisai Stakes (JPN G3).