Pancho Martin

Frank "Pancho" Martin
Personal information
BornFrank Martin
(1925-12-03)December 3, 1925
Havana, Cuba
DiedJuly 18, 2012(2012-07-18) (aged 86)
Garden City, New York, U.S.
OccupationThoroughbred racehorse trainer
Horse racing career
SportHorse racing
Career wins3,241
Major racing wins
Wood Memorial Stakes (1959, 1974)

Display Handicap (1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1978)
Brooklyn Handicap (1971)
Discovery Handicap (1971, 1974)
Manhattan Handicap (1971)
Tremont Stakes (1971)
Suburban Handicap (1972)
Jockey Club Gold Cup (1972)
Santa Anita Derby (1973)
Santa Anita Handicap (1974)
Gotham Stakes (1974)
Toboggan Handicap (1977, 1998)
Bay Shore Stakes (1978)
Morven Stakes (1980)
Massachusetts Handicap (1980)
Whirlaway Stakes (1998)
Breeders' Cup wins:

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (1984)
Racing awards
North America's leading trainer by earnings (1974)
New York Turf Writers Association Outstanding Trainer Award (1971, 1974, 1982)
Honours
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame (1981)
Significant horses
Autobiography, Sham, Hitchcock, Never Bow, Paraje, Big Shot II, Prince Dantan, Knightly Dawn, Rube the Great, Accipiter, Great Above, Ring of Light, Triocala, Outstandingly, Watch the Bird

Frank "Pancho" Martin (December 3, 1925 – July 18, 2012) was a Cuban-born American trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses. He was one of the leading trainers on the New York Racing Association circuit during the 1970s and early 1980s and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1981.[1] He won 3,241 races from 18,985 starts, with purse earnings of $47,592,089.[1][2]

Martin first led the New York trainer standings in 1971 and led the NYRA circuit for ten consecutive years from 1973 through 1982.[3] He was North America's leading trainer by earnings in 1974 and won more than twenty individual meet titles in New York.[1][3] His champions included Autobiography, the 1972 American Champion Older Male Horse, and Outstandingly, the 1984 American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly.[1][4][5] He is also known for training Sham, winner of the 1973 Santa Anita Derby and runner-up to Secretariat in the 1973 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.[1][6][7]

Early life

Martin was born in Havana, Cuba, on December 3, 1925.[1] He grew up two blocks from Oriental Park Racetrack, where he began working as a hot walker.[8] He worked his way from hot walker to trainer in Cuba by age sixteen.[1]

By age twenty-one, Martin was racing Cuban horses in Ohio. He later trained in New England and Florida before becoming based in New York.[1] He left Cuba in 1947, moved to the United States in 1949, and began training in New York in 1951.[3]

Training career

Early stakes success

Martin's first major stakes winner was Manassa Mauler, who won the 1959 Wood Memorial Stakes at Jamaica Race Course.[1] Manassa Mauler was owned by Emil Dolce, ridden by Ray Broussard, and completed the 11⁄8 miles in 1:493⁄5.[9] Martin won the Wood Memorial again in 1974 with Rube the Great.[1][9]

During the 1960s, Martin continued training primarily in the eastern United States. Don Poggio, one of his notable runners from that period, won the 1961 Monmouth Handicap.[10]

Partnership with the Sommers

Martin became closely associated with owners Sigmund Sommer and Viola Sommer, whose green-and-yellow stable was prominent in New York during the early 1970s.[11] His work for the Sommers included privately purchased horses, claimed horses, handicap runners, and classic prospects.[12][3]

Hitchcock was among Martin's first major Sommer runners. Martin bought the German-bred horse for the Sommers in 1970.[3] Hitchcock won the 1970 Display Handicap, the 1970 and 1971 Gallant Fox Handicaps, and the 1972 Suburban Handicap.[3] Ángel Cordero Jr. later identified Hitchcock as one of Martin's best horses and credited Martin for bringing him from Germany and developing him in New York.[3]

Never Bow was another successful private purchase. He was bought from Jack Dreyfus Jr. shortly before the 1971 Westchester Handicap, then won that race for Sommer and Martin.[13] He also won the 1971 Brooklyn Handicap at Aqueduct after a stretch duel with Twice Worthy and Protanto.[14]

On December 11, 1971, Martin saddled five winners on one Aqueduct card, all for Sigmund Sommer. The winners were Kubalai, Izadore, Prince Color, Trying Times, and Canning. The New Yorker reported that it was the first time a trainer had won five races on one New York program.[15]

Autobiography became Martin's first champion. Bred and first raced by Ogden Phipps, Autobiography was sold to Sommer early in his three-year-old season and developed into a leading handicap horse under Martin.[4] In 1972, Autobiography won the San Fernando Stakes, Excelsior Handicap, Westchester Handicap, and Jockey Club Gold Cup. His Jockey Club Gold Cup win came by 15 lengths at two miles.[4] He was voted the 1972 American Champion Older Male Horse.[4]

Martin won the Display Handicap five times: with Hitchcock in 1970, Paraje in 1971, 1972, and 1973, and Proud Arion in 1978.[1][16] Paraje's third Display victory set an Aqueduct track record of 3:474⁄5 for 21⁄4 miles.[16]

Sham and the 1973 Triple Crown

Martin's best-known horse was Sham, a dark bay colt bred by Claiborne Farm. After the death of Claiborne's A. B. "Bull" Hancock Jr., Sham was sold as part of the dispersal of Hancock's racing stock. Sigmund and Viola Sommer bought him for $200,000, the second-highest price of the dispersal, and the colt was transferred from Woody Stephens to Martin for his three-year-old season.[6]

Sham began 1973 in California. He won the Santa Catalina Stakes, then defeated Linda's Chief and Out of the East in the Santa Anita Derby, equaling the stakes record of 1:47 for 11⁄8 miles.[6][17] In the Wood Memorial Stakes, Martin also entered Knightly Dawn and Beautiful Music, then scratched both before post time. Sham finished second by a head to Angle Light, with Secretariat third.[18][6]

In the 1973 Kentucky Derby, Sham struck his mouth against the starting gate and broke two teeth, but finished second to Secretariat.[7][6] Secretariat set a Derby record of 1:592⁄5. Sham again finished second to Secretariat in the 1973 Preakness Stakes.[7] In the 1973 Belmont Stakes, Sham pressed Secretariat through fast early fractions before fading to fifth.[7]

Sham did not race again after the Belmont. He was diagnosed with a hairline fracture of his right front cannon bone and was retired to stud after being syndicated for $3 million.[6][17] Martin's son Greg later said Sham was his father's favorite horse.[3]

1974 season and national earnings title

Martin's highest national ranking came in 1974, when he led North American trainers by earnings.[1] He also set a New York single-season record. On Thanksgiving Day, Free Hand won the Queens County Handicap at Aqueduct, becoming Martin's 130th New York winner of the season and breaking the previous record set by Hirsch Jacobs in 1936.[19] NYRA credited him with 156 winners for the year at Aqueduct, Belmont Park, and Saratoga Race Course, a record that stood until Gary Contessa surpassed it in 2007.[3]

Prince Dantan was one of Martin's leading horses of 1974. Bought from John W. Galbreath's Darby Dan Farm, he won the San Antonio Handicap and the Santa Anita Handicap for Sommer and Martin.[12] In the Santa Anita Handicap, he defeated Ancient Title and other older horses by 41⁄2 lengths under Ron Turcotte.[12]

Martin also trained two leading three-year-olds for Sommer in 1974. Rube the Great won the Gotham Stakes and a division of the Wood Memorial Stakes, then later won a division of the Discovery Handicap.[20][3] Accipiter, a son of Damascus, won the Withers Stakes and Saranac Stakes.[21]

Later in 1974, Aqueduct stewards announced that two Sommer-owned horses trained by Martin, Long Hunt and Corporate Headache, had laboratory reports showing medication in their systems after races earlier in the meeting. Martin was initially suspended for 60 days and barred from the track. He obtained a stay in the New York Supreme Court while the case was sent to the State Racing and Wagering Board for a hearing.[22]

Later career

Martin remained a leading New York trainer after the peak of the Sommer stable. Great Above, owned by the Sommers and trained by Martin, won the 1977 Toboggan Handicap in track-record time and later won the 1978 Paumonok Handicap.[23][24] After Sigmund Sommer's death in 1979, Martin continued to train for Viola Sommer. His later Sommer runners included Identical, Ring of Light, Triocala, Crackedbell, Home On The Ridge, and Machine to Tower.[8][25]

Identical won the 1979 Gallant Fox Handicap and 1980 Stymie Handicap for Sommer and Martin.[26] Ring of Light won the 1980 Excelsior Handicap and Massachusetts Handicap, then added the 1981 Roseben Handicap and Suffolk Downs Handicap.[27] Triocala won the 1980 Alsab Stakes and Morven Stakes and later the 1981 Count Fleet Stakes.[28][29]

Martin trained Outstandingly for Harbor View Farm. She won the inaugural Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies in 1984 after the disqualification of Fran's Valentine and was voted American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly.[5][1]

Martin continued training into the 2000s. His later stakes winners included Watch the Bird, winner of the 1998 Whirlaway Stakes, and Home On The Ridge, winner of the 1998 Toboggan Handicap.[1][8] He saddled 77 starters in 2012.[3]

Training style and reputation

Martin was known as a demanding and competitive trainer, with a reputation for improving horses acquired through claims or private purchases.[8][3] Former assistant Gary Contessa, who worked for Martin from 1980 to 1985, described him as an "ultimate horseman" and said he was skilled at identifying and correcting problems in horses other trainers had given up on.[8][3]

Cordero, who rode several of Martin's major horses, described him as difficult after defeats but generous and respected on the backstretch.[3] Martin's competitiveness also extended to his family. His son Jose Martin became a successful trainer, and in 1973 challenged his father for the New York training title. Pancho Martin won the title by eight victories over Jose Martin and John Campo Sr..[8]

Honors and records

Martin was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1981.[1] He was North America's leading trainer by earnings in 1974.[1] He received the New York Turf Writers Association Outstanding Trainer Award in 1971, 1974, and 1982, and was honored by the organization as New York's top trainer in 1971, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, and 1981.[3]

He won more than twenty individual New York meet titles. He was leading trainer at Saratoga Race Course in 1980 and 1982. From 1976 through 2011, he ranked second at Aqueduct with 910 wins and fourth at Belmont Park with 531 wins.[3]

Personal life

Martin was married to Charlene Martin for 46 years.[3] They had three sons, Jose, Frank Jr., and Greg, and two daughters, Charlene and Margaret.[3][8] Jose Martin trained champions Lakeville Miss, Wayward Lass, and Groovy before his death in 2006.[30] His grandson Carlos Martin also became a trainer on the New York circuit.[8]

Portrayal in Secretariat

Martin was portrayed by Nestor Serrano in the 2010 Disney film Secretariat.[31] The film presented him as a verbal antagonist to the Secretariat team. Secretariat's jockey Ron Turcotte objected to that characterization, saying, "It wasn't that way."[32]

Death

Martin died at his home in Garden City, New York, on July 18, 2012, after an illness. He was 86.[3][8] His funeral Mass was scheduled at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in West Hempstead, New York.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 "Frank "Pancho" Martin, Sr". National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Trainer Profile: Frank Martin, Sr". Equibase. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 "Frank "Pancho" Martin, Trainer of Sham, Dead at 86" (PDF). New York Racing Association. July 18, 2012. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Hunter, Avalyn. "Autobiography". American Classic Pedigrees. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "1984 Juvenile Fillies". Breeders' Cup. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hunter, Avalyn. "Sham". American Classic Pedigrees. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Callahan, Tom (May 2, 1993). "Left in Shambles: Everyone Remembers Secretariat's Great 1973, but What About That Horse He Kept Beating?". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Grening, David (July 19, 2012). "Frank "Pancho" Martin is Dead at 86, Hall of Fame Trainer". Daily Racing Form. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  9. 1 2 "Wood Memorial". New York Racing Association. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Hall of Fame Trainer Dead at 86". ESPN. July 19, 2012. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  11. ↑ Nack, William (2002). Secretariat: The Making of a Champion. Da Capo Press. p. 217. ISBN 9780306811333.
  12. 1 2 3 Ryall, G. F. T. (March 18, 1974). "Out of the Money". The New Yorker. p. 110. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  13. ↑ Ryall, G. F. T. (March 27, 1971). "Hats Off!". The New Yorker. p. 98. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  14. ↑ Ryall, G. F. T. (July 24, 1971). "Improver". The New Yorker. p. 65. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  15. ↑ Ryall, G. F. T. (December 18, 1971). "Quintuplets". The New Yorker. p. 63. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  16. 1 2 Ryall, G. F. T. (December 17, 1973). "Three for Paraje". The New Yorker. p. 74. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  17. 1 2 Mitchell, Eric (April 10, 2026). "Overshadowed Greatness: Sham Was a Star in His Own Right". America's Best Racing. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  18. ↑ Ryall, G. F. T. (April 21, 1973). "Eagle Bird". The New Yorker. p. 92. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  19. ↑ "The Race Track". The New Yorker. December 2, 1974. p. 184. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  20. ↑ Ryall, G. F. T. (April 8, 1974). "Those Three-Year-Olds!". The New Yorker. p. 115. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  21. ↑ "The Blood-Horse 1974: Vol. 100 Index". The Blood-Horse. 1974. Retrieved July 7, 2026 – via Internet Archive.
  22. ↑ "The Race Track". The New Yorker. December 16, 1974. p. 60. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  23. ↑ Hunter, Avalyn. "Great Above". American Classic Pedigrees. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Horse Profile for Great Above". Equibase. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  25. ↑ "Horse Profile for Crackedbell". Equibase. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  26. ↑ "Stymie Stakes". Equibase. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  27. ↑ Haskin, Steve (September 10, 2018). "The Empire State Strikes Back". BloodHorse. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  28. ↑ "Pensioned New York Stallion Triocala Dead". BloodHorse. September 28, 2005. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  29. ↑ "Horse Profile for Triocala". Equibase. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  30. ↑ "Jose Martin, Trainer of Groovy, Dies at 63". BloodHorse. November 23, 2006. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  31. ↑ "Secretariat". IMDb. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
  32. ↑ Wilkin, Tim (October 19, 2010). "Secretariat's Jockey Says the Movie is 'Alright'". Times Union. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
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