Tinners Way, the first two-time winner of the Pacific Classic (G1) in 1994-95, was euthanized Wednesday at Old Friends Thoroughbred Retirement Farm in Georgetown, Kentucky. He was 27.
The final colt sired by the legendary Secretariat in 1990, Tinners Way was campaigned by breeder Juddmonte Farms and started his racing career in Europe under the care of John Gosden in 1993, winning 2-of-7 starts on turf including a pair of listed stakes. He transferred to Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel in the fall of his 3-year-old season.
The chestnut colt switched to the main track as a 4-year-old and notched his first U.S. stakes victory in the Golden Gate Fields Breeders’ Cup H. Two starts later, he recorded his first graded tally in the Pacific Classic, defeating future Hall of Famer Best Pal by a length.
After opening 1995 with a third in the Californian (G1) and a second in the Hollywood Gold Cup (G1), Tinners Way successfully defended his title in the Pacific Classic, rolling to a 4 ½-length score in the important Southern California feature. His final stakes victory came in the 1996 Californian.
Tinners Way retired to Vinery Stud in Kentucky with earnings of $1,847,052 from a 28-7-6-4 ledger. He was relocated to Harris Farms in California and finally at Key Ranch in Texas, where he was pensioned in 2010 and donated to Old Friends by owners Phil Leckinger and Jerry Hardin.
“Twenty seven is not a bad number,” Leckinger said by phone from Texas. “I can’t thank Old Friends enough for the care and support he was given. Tinners Way certainly did wonders for us, he did wonders for Juddmonte on the track, and I hope he did wonders for his friends and fans in retirement.”
“We are so saddened by the loss of Tinners Way,” added Old Friends’s Michael Blowen, “but its times like these that you really see how much we can do for these old horses. Tinner, like Wallenda, was a warrior to the end, and when he told us his battle was over, we listened. He had so many friends from all over the country that visited him often. He leaves behind a great legacy and a host of adoring fans.”
For additional information contact Old Friends at (502) 863-1775.
