American horse trainer (1927–2020)
Melvin Stute |
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Occupation |
Trainer |
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Born | August 8, 1927
Fort Wayne, Indiana |
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Died | August 12, 2020 (aged 93) |
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Career wins | 2,000 |
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Californian Stakes (1961)
San Carlos Handicap (1961, 1978)
Del Mar Oaks (1969)
Frank E. Kilroe Mile Handicap (1970, 1995)
Del Mar Futurity (1975)
Norfolk Stakes (1975, 1985)
Haggin Stakes (1975)
California Juvenile Stakes (1975)
California Derby (1976)
Carleton F. Burke Handicap (1977)
Affirmed Handicap (1981)
Santa Catalina Stakes (1981)
San Felipe Stakes (1981)
Mervyn Leroy Handicap (1984)
Santa Ynez Stakes (1984, 1986, 1987)
Hollywood Futurity (1985)
Del Mar Debutante Stakes (1986)
El Camino Real Derby (1986, 1989)
Florida Derby (1986)
Jersey Derby (1986)
San Fernando Stakes (1986)
Santa Anita Derby (1986)
Fantasy Stakes (1987)
Monrovia Handicap (1987, 1996)
Oaklawn Handicap (1987)
Railbird Stakes (1987, 2003)
Strub Stakes (1987)
Test Stakes (1987)
Dixie Stakes (1988)
La Brea Stakes (1988)
Las Flores Handicap (1989)
Las Virgenes Stakes (1989)
Martha Washington Stakes (1989)
San Vicente Stakes (1989)
El Encino Stakes (1995)
Morvich Handicap (1995)
San Rafael Stakes (1997)
Triple Bend Invitational Handicap (1997)
Palos Verdes Handicap (1998)
Sensational Star Handicap (1998)
Landaluce Stakes (2002)
Sorrento Stakes (1986, 2002)
Best Pal Stakes (2003)
Santa Paula Stakes (2003)
Hollywood Juvenile Championship Stakes (2003)
Speakeasy Stakes (2007)
U.S. Triple Crown series:
Preakness Stakes (1986)
Breeders' Cup wins:
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (1986)
Breeders' Cup Sprint (1987) |
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Laffit Pincay Jr. Award (2006) |
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Fairplex Park Hall of Fame (2003) Mel Stute's Bar at
Hollywood Park Racetrack |
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Brave Raj,
Double Discount,
Snow Chief,
Telly's Pop,
Very Subtle |
Melvin Frederick "Mel" Stute (August 8, 1927 – August 12, 2020) was an American
trainer of
Thoroughbred racehorses. On December 11, 2010, at
Hollywood Park Racetrack, he won the 2000th race of a career
[1] that includes a win in the second leg of the
U.S. Triple Crown series, the
Preakness Stakes in 1986,
[2] the
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies that same year, and the 1987
Breeders' Cup Sprint.
[3]
Stute was the younger brother of trainer
Warren Stute (1921–2007). His family moved to California in 1934 when Mel was seven years old.
[4] In his teens, Stute worked as a groom at
Santa Anita Racetrack before winning his first race as a trainer in 1947 at
Portland Meadows Racetrack in
Portland, Oregon. Since then he won twelve training titles at various California tracks of which six were at
Fairplex Park Racetrack, where he is the all-time leader in races won.
[5]
Champions
In 1986, Stute trained two
Champions. One was
Snow Chief, with whom he won the
Santa Anita Derby and
Preakness Stakes, and was voted
American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Horse. The other was
Brave Raj, the
American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly who won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.
[6]
Stute
bred and trained
Telly's Pop. The
gelding was owned by the racing partnership of Hollywood
film director and
producer
Howard Koch and actor
Telly Savalas, the latter naming the horse for his father. In 1975, Telly's Pop became the first horse to ever win the California Triple Crown for two-year-olds.
[7]
[8] Stute also trained
Double Discount who on October 9, 1977, won the
Carleton F. Burke Handicap in a
world record time of 1:57 2/5 for 1 1/4 miles on turf.
[9] In the 1987 Breeders' Cup Sprint, Stute won with
Very Subtle, a
mare who defeated males to capture the top prize in the world for
sprint horses on dirt.
Awards and honors
In 2003, Stute became the first inductee into Fairplex Park's Hall of Fame.
[10] Along with brother Warren, he was the recipient of the 2006
Laffit Pincay Jr. Award, given annually by Hollywood Park Racetrack to someone who has served the horse racing industry with integrity, dedication, determination and distinction.
[11]
Family
Stute remained active in racing but on a much-reduced scale. Over the years, his wife Annabelle has owned and raced a number of good horses
[12] and their son
Gary Stute is also a trainer.
He died on August 12, 2020, at the age of 93.
[13]
References
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^
ESPN, December 15, 2010
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^
Sports Illustrated - May 26, 1986
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^
Mel Stute at Breeders' Cup.com
Archived 2012-03-15 at the
Wayback Machine
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^
Daily Racing Form interview - January 20, 2011
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^
Daily Racing Form September 8, 2011
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^
Bloodhorse.com - January 23, 2011
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^
St. Petersburg Times - November 29, 1975
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^
Baltimore Sun - November 30, 1975
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^
St. Petersburg Times - October 10, 1977
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^
Fairplex Park
Archived 2011-09-24 at the
Wayback Machine
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^
Bloodhorse.com - June 24, 2006 "Stute Brothers Named Pincay Award Winners"
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^
Annabelle Stute biography at the NTR
Archived 2012-04-05 at the
Wayback Machine
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^ Harris, Beth (12 August 2020).
"Mel Stute, trainer of 1986 Preakness winner Snow Chief, dies at 93". baltimoresun.com. Associated Press. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
External links