Age finally caught up with the 8 year old son of Congratulations and he was officially retired after finishing last of seven in an optional claims race on November 6. That performance, however, did little to diminish the legacy his twelve victories at the famed dirt oval had created.
Before the eighth race on November 16, Churchill Downs hosted a special ceremony honoring their track’s winning horse. Mike Anderson, president of Churchill Downs Racetrack, presented Bango’s owners, Fred and Debbie Schwartz of Tamaroak Partners, and trainer Greg Foley with a framed collage of all 15 of Bango’s victories, including two at Ellis Park and one bee Turfway Park. They also received a custom Woodford Reserve bottle engraved with Bango’s name.
“It’s really special,” Fred Schwartz said. “To have bred and owned the all-time winningest horse in the history of Churchill Downs for 150 years, a couple of Wisconsin farmers. It’s incredible.’
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Bango is out of the Smart Strike mare Josaka, which they purchased for $75,000 at the 2008 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. She showed promise early in her career, hitting the board in all three starts. However, an injury after her first victory led to her retirement from the broodmare band.
Schwartz lives near Madison, Wisconsin and raises their mares and foals at Alex Rankin’s Upson Downs Farm just outside of Louisville. When Josaka joined the broodmare band there, they received interest from a person who wanted to buy her. However, they denied both offers they made.
“We just said, ‘We’re not interested,’” Schwartz said. “We held our ground and look what we got. We have Bango.’
Bango not only made history, but was also simply a top competitor on the circuit. He was victorious in nine stakes races, placing in Class 2 and earning $1,644,979.
“It was very unexpected,” Schwartz said of the ride Bango took with them. “He won one, then he would win again, and win again. He just knew where the thread was. He was just a tough horse. When he was here (at Churchill Downs), it became so that you would expect him to win. It was a pleasure to have him. Twelve wins, I don’t think that will be broken for a long time.”
Josaka also produced Eton Ridge, itself an 11-time Puerto Rican Grade 1 winner.
Schwartz said he believed Bango was better than his pedigree, but the success they had with their own breeder made it extra special. Schwartz has had success in sales in the past, most notably with multiple Class 3-winning millionaire Champali, which was purchased for $75,000 by Lloyd Madison Farms – the business of his brother-in-law, Jim Bakke.
However, Schwartz said he currently prefers to breed only for racing opportunities. Through Lloyd Madison, he was involved in homebred breeding operations with multiple winning stakes Denial and 2020 Kentucky Derby (G1) starter Major Fed .
“I used to buy at the sales, we just had better luck in the broodmare stable,” Schwartz said.
A common denominator for all those horses is Foley, who currently has about ten horses in training for Schwartz.
“This guy right here is every horse trainer’s dream,” Foley said of Schwartz. “He agrees with pretty much everything I’ve ever told him. We’ve had a lot of good horses, hopefully more to come.”
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