The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing is probably the toughest sporting achievement. Besides that, it is not simple; it is extremely rare. For a horse to win the Triple Crown, it must win three races in the same year: the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. These races are at different tracks, run over different distances, and are held within a really short time frame.
The factor that makes this challenge even more difficult is that the horse has to be exactly three years old. Horses are not given a second chance. If they lose one race or skip one, their dream of winning the Triple Crown will be over anyhow. This is why only the best horses, trainers, and jockeys are even able to try for it.
From 1919 to 2025, only 13 horses have been able to win the Triple Crown. It means the historic achievement of this kind has taken place only 13 times over more than a century of American horse racing. This fact alone is enough to prove why the Triple Crown is recognised as the greatest prize in American horse racing.
The guide shows you all the facts. It reveals the entire history, offers a list of winners year by year, and gives information about jockeys and trainers.
The Triple Crown is a series of three races rather than a single one. They are held during the spring racing season in the United States. The races are close to one another, usually within five weeks, which means a great physical demand is put on young horses.
Each race challenges a different skill, so the horse that wins the Triple Crown has to be excellent at all of them.
The Kentucky Derby is held on the first Saturday of May at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race length is 1¼ miles. This is the most celebrated horse race in America, and each year over 150, 000 people attend it.
The winning horse in the Kentucky Derby is awarded a blanket of red roses; hence, the race is termed the "Run for the Roses." A great number of horses win the Derby; however, very few aim for the Triple Crown after that.
The Preakness Stakes is performed on the third Saturday of May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The race covers the distance of 1 3/16 miles, which is the shortest among the three Triple Crown races.
The winner is covered with black-eyed Susans, which are the state flower of Maryland. The Preakness is a real test of stamina since it is held only two weeks after the Kentucky Derby, so the horses get very little time to recover.
The Belmont Stakes is held on the first Saturday of June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The race length is 1½ miles, which makes it the longest and toughest race in the series.
As it requires a lot of stamina, the Belmont Stakes is referred to as the "Test of Champions." A lot of horses tap out here, even those that have won the first two races.
The horse has to win the three races in the same year to be a Triple Crown winner. This is the thing that makes the Triple Crown so unique and outstanding.
In the late 19th century and early 20th century, the popularity of horse racing in the United States soared and thus came the idea of the Triple Crown.
Back then, races took place in different areas, and each of these areas thought that their races were the most significant.
Since transportation was not easy and many owners were unwilling to send their horses over long distances, it even got to some owners who also thought that racing 3-year-old horses early in the year was unsafe. For these reasons, the concept of uniting the three races into one championship took a long time to develop.
Sir Barton is the horse that, in 1919, accomplished the feat of winning the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes in the same year. But the use of the phrase "Triple Crown" was still quite rare then.
During the 1930s, a racing journalist, Charles Hatton, contributed significantly to the popularity of the name by frequently using the phrase in his articles. In the 1940s, the newspapers and fans started to view the Triple Crown as the highest racing honor.
In 1950, the Triple Crown title was made official. At that time, Sir Barton and the preceding winners were officially acknowledged as Triple Crown champions. Since that moment, the Triple Crown became a fixture in and a highly esteemed part of American sports history.
The table below shows the full and verified list of all U.S. Triple Crown winners up to 2025. These horses managed to win the three races within the same season.
| Year | Horse Name |
| 1919 | Sir Barton |
| 1930 | Gallant Fox |
| 1935 | Omaha |
| 1937 | War Admiral |
| 1941 | Whirlaway |
| 1943 | Count Fleet |
| 1946 | Assault |
| 1948 | Citation |
| 1973 | Secretariat |
| 1977 | Seattle Slew |
| 1978 | Affirmed |
| 2015 | American Pharoah |
| 2018 | Justify |
As of 2025, no horse has won the Triple Crown since Justify in 2018. This means the total number of Triple Crown winners remains 13.
A Triple Crown win is a team achievement, not a solo horse feat. In fact, the star jockey who rides the horse and the trainer who prepares the horse for a long time are the two main heroes, along with the horse.
| Horse | Year | Jockey | Trainer |
| Sir Barton | 1919 | Johnny Loftus | H. Guy Bedwell |
| Gallant Fox | 1930 | Earl Sande | Jim Fitzsimmons |
| Omaha | 1935 | Willie Saunders | Jim Fitzsimmons |
| War Admiral | 1937 | Charley Kurtsinger | George H. Conway |
| Whirlaway | 1941 | Eddie Arcaro | Ben A. Jones |
| Count Fleet | 1943 | Johnny Longden | Don Cameron |
| Assault | 1946 | Warren Mehrtens | Max Hirsch |
| Citation | 1948 | Eddie Arcaro | Horace A. Jones |
| Secretariat | 1973 | Ron Turcotte | Lucien Laurin |
| Seattle Slew | 1977 | Jean Cruguet | William H. Turner Jr. |
| Affirmed | 1978 | Steve Cauthen | Laz Barrera |
| American Pharoah | 2015 | Victor Espinoza | Bob Baffert |
| Justify | 2018 | Mike E. Smith | Bob Baffert |
Bob Baffert stands out as the only trainer to win two Triple Crowns, making him one of the most famous trainers in modern horse racing.
The reasons why the Triple Crown is so difficult to win are numerous. Firstly, each race is a different distance, so a horse has to be fast and have great stamina at the same time. Only a few horses are capable of doing both.
Secondly, the races are scheduled very tightly. There is hardly any time to rest and be back in shape for the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes. An injury, being tired, or getting sick can quickly put an end to a horse's Triple Crown-winning attempt.
Thirdly, only three-year-old horses are eligible to race. This implies the competition varies each year, and horses are still getting their physical growth.
With all these reasons combined, the Triple Crown is still one of the most difficult feats to accomplish in sports.
During the first years of horse racing, champions of the Triple Crown were not a rarity. But the winning of such a title became less frequent as training methods, level of competition, and safety standards changed.
Such lengthy intervals are evidence that the Triple Crown is a highly difficult and hardly predictable event.
From 2018 onwards, there have been a number of horses that have only managed to win one or two of the Triple Crown races and have been unable to win all three. This is quite normal in today's racing world.
In 2025, for instance, a horse called Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes but did not win the Preakness Stakes. Due to this, the Triple Crown was not achieved.
Fans dream of a new champion every year, but only a truly exceptional horse is capable of winning.
When we look at the Triple Crown winners by decade, it gives us an idea of how uncommon this feat is. There were decades when more champions came out, and then there were some that didn't produce any at all. This trend indicates that achieving the Triple Crown is not purely a matter of talent but also involves timing, rivals, and luck.
Below is a simple chart that shows the number of Triple Crown winners in each decade.
Chart: Triple Crown Winners by Decade
In fact, there were many talented horses with great pedigrees in the last 10 years, but none of them has been able to win all three Races of the Triple Crown since Justify in 2018. The chart clearly highlights this gap. We can see that every year from 2016 to 2025 there are no winners at all.
The Triple Crown Winners (1919, 2025) illustrate the rarity of such an achievement. In over a century, there have been only 13 horses that managed to win all three races in a single season. Each winner proves a perfect balance of speed, stamina, and expert training.
Even today, the Triple Crown is still considered the most prestigious award in American horse racing. The legacy of these champions, from Sir Barton to Justify, continues to define greatness and inspire racing fans every year.
There have only been 13 horses that have won the Triple Crown in the US.
Sir Barton was the first champion in 1919.
Secretariat (1973) may be the most well-known horse as he won the races by huge margins and broke records.
No. The last horse to win the Triple Crown was Justify in 2018.
The race is the longest, and the final one, so the horse that wins must still have energy and speed.
Yes, there is a separate series of races for females; however, no female horse has won the main Triple Crown.
No. A horse can only try once, as it has to be a three-year-old at the time.
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