Bred by Ivan Dalos' Tall Oaks Farm, Victory Gallop was foaled later in the year than is common for most Northern Hemisphere Thoroughbreds.
Sired by 1987 Florida Derby winner Cryptoclearance, who won 12 of 44 starts and earned $3,376,327 lifetime, he was out of the mare Victorious Lil.
The following year, in the lead-up to the American Classic Races for three-year-olds, he won the Rebel Stakes, then beat Favorite Trick in the Arkansas Derby.
In the Kentucky Derby, he was running dead last behind fourteen other horses at the half mile pole, then made a powerful drive near the end of the homestretch to pass betting favorite Indian Charlie but ran out of track and finished second to winner Real Quiet.
In a poll published by the New York Times' About, Inc., he was the top vote getter for Most Impressive Performance of the Year for his win in the Stephen Foster Handicap.