“The industry lost a great man today,” said Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith, who rode these horses to their most memorable victories, “and I lost a good friend.”
Known for his patience and individual attention to his horses, Shirreffs has made his mark on some of the greatest thoroughbred racing. He not only won the Derby with Giacomo, but also the 2009 Breeders’ Cup Classic with Zenyatta. He also captured the Breeders ‘Cup Ladies’ Classic that year with Life Is Sweet, a race he had won the previous year with Zenyatta.
He trained both Giacomo and Zenyatta for Jerry and Ann Moss. Giacomo also co-owned Stronach Stables late in his career.
For all his success – which was plentiful, resulting in winning 596 races and more than $58 million in purses – Shirreffs was often most respected for his horsemanship. He trained a medium-sized horse stable at Santa Anita Park and worked closely with the animals in his care, as did his wife, Dottie Ingordo-Shirreffs.
“I think kindness is the big key to horses,” Shirreffs told BloodHorse earlier this winter. “I think it’s good to talk to them, and I always ask the riders, grooms and hotwalkers to talk to them. Horses are always trying to learn from their environment. If they can communicate more with their environment, they will have a more successful and happier experience.”
“He put the horses first. You couldn’t make him do anything he didn’t want to do if he didn’t believe in it,” noted Dottie’s son, David Ingordo, one of the sport’s top phlebotomists. “He was good to all the people around him. The people who worked for him worked for him forever.”
Born June 1, 1945 in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, Shirreffs grew up around horses and spent his childhood between Port Washington on Long Island, NY, and his family’s farm in New Hampshire. He served in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War before embarking on a training career that would eventually make him one of the West Coast’s most recognizable and respected conditioners.
Shirreffs started training in the 1970s, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that his career took off. A major turning point came in 1994, when he became a private trainer for Ed Nahem and Marshall Naify’s 505 Farms, a role he held until Naify’s death in 2000. The relationship helped take Shirreffs’ career to the next level and generated support from other clients.
He will forever be linked to Zenyatta, whose late closing style led to 19 straight wins before her only loss behind Blame in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs. She became the only female to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic in 2009 and was named Horse of the Year in 2010, despite losing in the Classic. She also earned three consecutive Eclipse Awards as the Older Women’s Champion from 2008 through 2010.
Breeders’ Cup praised Shirreffs in a statement, saying: “John was widely respected for his integrity, patience and steadfast commitment to the care and development of his horses.
“In campaigning Zenyatta for a Hall of Fame career, he never failed to make the great racing mare accessible to her fans and promote the sport to thousands of people across the country and around the world. He understood the responsibility that comes with greatness and embraced the opportunity to share it, expanding the racing audience and inspiring a new generation of fans.”
Smith, her regular rider, said Shirreffs’ long-term approach with horses made him a perfect conditioner for Zenyatta.
“He would never rush a horse. He gave them time, and if he got them right, they lasted a long time,” he said. “Some of them would not only continue to be good, they would continue to get better. If you saw Zenyatta at age 2 or 3, you would never have guessed what she would become. But John saw it and gave her that time.”
Shirreffs and Smith also teamed up to win the Kentucky Derby with Giacomo, who stunned the crowd at Churchill Downs by winning the race at odds of 50.30-1. He was Shirreff’s first Kentucky Derby starter, but not his last.
He would run five more horses in the race for the roses, most recently with show finisher Baeza last year. Baeza would finish third in the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets and later have success winning the Pennsylvania Derby.
Reflecting on Giacomo’s Derby win last spring at Churchill Downs as he prepared Southern California shipper Baeza for the first leg of the Triple Crown, Shirreffs said, “It was just an amazing thrill and achievement, and to come here just brings it back a little bit.”
Typical of his unique style of training and caring for horses, Shirreffs and his staff often gave Baeza a carrot “smoothie” consisting of pulverized carrots and their juices.
In addition to the top level races Shirreffs won with Zenyatta, Giacomo, Life Is Sweet and Baeza, he added other Class 1 victories with horses such as Tiago, After Market, Harmonious, Express Train, Beyond Brilliant, Gormley and others.
His last stakes victory came on January 31 when he won the San Pasqual Stakes with Westwood for the CRK Stable of Lee and Susan Searing.
“We love John. He loves his job. He works hard at it,” said Lee Searing after the race. “If he gets a horse that he really likes and that is developing, there is no better trainer than John. The horses he has developed are phenomenal.”
Shirreffs was based at Santa Anita Park for years and was widely admired for his calm demeanor and reluctance to be in the spotlight. Reporters seeking commentary from Shirreffs after he won a major race often had to rush to grab him before following his horse back to the stable. But he was also known to sit in his shed and have thoughtful conversations with people he encountered.
Santa Anita Park issued a statement Thursday after Shirreffs’ death, calling him “a fixture at Santa Anita Park throughout his career and his legacy as a caring rider will remain embedded in the fabric of our history. Every horse that races at Santa Anita must first pass the statue of John’s greatest trainee, the beautiful mare Zenyatta. While John’s victories were numerous and prestigious, what he accomplished with Zenyatta in the 2009 Breeders’ Cup Classic was a masterpiece and rightly named the pinnacle moment in Santa Anita Park’s 90 years. Our deepest condolences go out to John’s wife, Dottie, and his family, including the riders and women who worked closely with John for so many years.
On the track, Smith said he was one of many riders who enjoyed riding for Shirreffs.
“I think any rider will tell you that when you rode for John you just had a good feeling about it. It’s hard to describe, but he was such a good person and you knew everything would be done right for the horse.”
Smith also offered his condolences to Dottie, other surviving family members and those who worked for the trainer.
“He was a man who was loyal, and he instilled that; people were loyal,” Ingordo said. “You can’t learn that, you either have it or you don’t.”
According to Ingordo, Dottie and Shirreffs got married on the day the trainer won the Hollywood Starlet Stakes, aptly named Hollywood Story: December 21, 2003.
“Then they went to the track, and that was their wedding photo,” he said.
Ingordo said other surviving family members include Shirreffs’ sister, Anita; Cherie DeVaux, who is married to Ingordo; and Ingordo’s daughter, Reagan, who was close to Shirreffs.
He said no funeral arrangements have been made yet.
—Frank Angst and Tracy Gantz contributed to this story
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