Melvin F. Stute
Melvin Stute |
Occupation |
Trainer |
Born |
August 8, 1927
Fort Wayne, Indiana |
Career wins |
2,000 (as at 11/12/10) |
Major racing wins, honours and awards |
Major racing wins |
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)
American Classics / Breeders' Cup wins:
Preakness Stakes (1986)
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (1986)
Breeders' Cup Sprint (1987) |
Racing awards |
Laffit Pincay, Jr. Award (2006) |
Honours |
Fairplex Park Hall of Fame (2003)
Mel Stute's Bar at Hollywood Park Racetrack |
Significant horses |
Brave Raj, Double Discount, Snow Chief, Telly's Pop, Very Subtle |
Melvin Frederick "Mel" Stute (born August 8, 1927 in Fort Wayne, Indiana) is 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]
A younger brother to trainer Warren Stute (1921–2007), their parents moved to California in 1934 when Mel was seven years old.[4] In his teens, Mel 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 has 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, Mel Stute trained two Champions. Snow Chief, with whom he won the Santa Anita Derby and Preakness Stakes, was voted American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Horse and Brave Raj, the American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly who won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.[6]
Mel 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] Mel 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 & Honors
In 2003 Mel Stute became the first inductee into Fairplex Park's Hall of Fame.[10] Along with brother Warren, Mel Stute 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
As of 2011, Mel Stute is still 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.
References
- ^ ESPN, December 15, 2010
- ^ Sports Illustrated - May 26, 1986
- ^ Mel Stute at Breeders' Cup.com
- ^ Daily Racing Form interview - January 20, 2011
- ^ Daily Racing Form September 8, 2011
- ^ Bloodhorse.com - January 23, 2011
- ^ St. Petersburg Times - November 29, 1975
- ^ Baltimore Sun - November 30, 1975
- ^ St. Petersburg Times - October 10, 1977
- ^ Fairplex Park
- ^ Bloodhorse.com - June 24, 2006 "Stute Brothers Named Pincay Award Winners"
- ^ Annabelle Stute biography at the NTR
External links
Persondata |
Name |
Stute, Melvin F. |
Alternative names |
|
Short description |
Horse trainer |
Date of birth |
August 8, 1927 |
Place of birth |
Fort Wayne, Indiana |
Date of death |
|
Place of death |
|