Tall Tales of the Track – A Cat, a Challenge, and a Car
August 6th, 2026
Sometimes all it takes is one word of confidence to change the trajectory of a career. In this particular case, a gray colt named after a cat had caught the eye of a man who worked closely with him, his years of experience telling him that this horse was special. As the gray colt grew, so did the horseman’s faith, enough to change his owner’s mind.
Gato del Sol may not have impressed owner Arthur Hancock III at first, but he rewarded the judgment of one yearling manager with a Derby win and a special prize.
More Than a Feeling
Sam Ransom knew horses. As a young man working for John and Fannie Hertz, he broke a brown colt by Reigh Count out of the speedy mare Quickly and thought so highly of him that he begged the couple not to sell the quirky yearling. Named Count Fleet, Ransom’s recommendation went on to win the Triple Crown in 1943.
By 1979, Ransom was working at Stone Farm, owned by Arthur Hancock III. A son of Arthur ‘Bull’ Hancock, Jr., Hancock had grown up on Claiborne Farm, living and breathing racehorses from his earliest days. Ransom had followed up his time at the Hertzes’ Stoner Creek Farm with a turn at Claiborne before spending decades with the younger Hancock as part of their foaling staff and then as a yearling manager. The 1979 crop at Stone included a gawky gray colt by Cougar II out of the Jacinto mare Peacefully.
Upon seeing the new addition, Hancock said, “This little sonofab*tch will never amount to a quarter,” while Ransom said, “Boss, this is a Derby horse.” In fact, he proclaimed the gray colt a Derby horse so many times that Hancock finally said, “Sam, if this horse wins the Kentucky Derby, I will buy a brand-new car.”
Despite Ransom’s confidence, the man behind Stone Farm entered Peacefully’s colt in the 1980 Keeneland July Yearling Sale, but the young horse was rejected, and Hancock decided to keep him. He registered the name Gato del Sol, named for a gray cat that would sit outside of the yearling barn with his eyes half-closed, basking in the sunlight. He brought in partner Leone Peters and sent the colt out to California and the barn of California trainer Edward Gregson.
Special Rewards
Gato del Sol also got his name from his sire Cougar II, a Chilean-bred dual-surface specialist imported to the United States at age four in 1970. He was 1972’s Champion Turf Horse and later a Hall of Famer who stood stud at Stone Farm from 1975 to 1989. Not only was he a winner at longer distances on the green, taking races like the San Juan Capistrano and Oak Tree Invitational Handicaps, but also the 10-furlong Santa Anita Handicap on dirt. His pairing with Peacefully, who had won the Luther Burbank Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on the turf, meant that Gato del Sol was outcrossed – meaning that his sire and dam had no common ancestors – which could be a genetic boon for a Thoroughbred.
The colt was of the late-running sort, so the more distance, the better. He broke his maiden in his third start, a one-mile maiden at Del Mar. After a third in the Balboa S., Gato del Sol tried the Del Mar Futurity (G2), also a mile, where he went from dead last at the top of the stretch to a head in front at the wire, getting his first stakes win and his first graded stakes as well. He ended his two-year-old season with two more stakes placements before getting a break ahead of the 1982 Triple Crown season.
Gato del Sol’s road to Louisville was a tad rocky. He was in the top three in an allowance followed by his try in the San Felipe (G2), but was fourth behind Muttering in the Santa Anita Derby (G1), an important West Coast prep for the Kentucky Derby. Gregson sent him east to Keeneland to try the nine-furlong Blue Grass (G1). Though he was 5 1/2 lengths behind Linkage, the Cougar II colt had shown that he was on the edge for his Derby try nine days later.
But the field for the race was a large one, 19 horses, and Gato del Sol had drawn post 18, almost widest of all. In the end, it did not matter. With regular rider Eddie Delahoussaye in the saddle, Gato del Sol was last early and moved up through the field, mounting his bid on the far turn. Fourth at the top of the stretch, the gray colt took the lead inside the final eighth to win the 108th Kentucky Derby by 2 1/2 lengths.
A few days after the race, when the hullabaloo had quieted down, and Arthur Hancock III was back at work, Sam Ransom came into his office. “Sam, I know why you’re here,” the master of Stone Farm said. “I’ve seen some nice Oldsmobiles, Buicks, and Chevrolets.”
“Boss, all I’ve ever wanted was a Cadillac or a Lincoln,” Ransom said.
With his boss’s blessing, the veteran horseman picked out a Lincoln Continental and drove it until he passed away. Hancock would recount in his memoir Dark Horses that Ransom’s wife said he loved that car more than her!
As for Gato del Sol, he skipped the Preakness (G1) to try the Belmont (G1) and finished second to Conquistador Cielo. He retired to stud in 1986 and stood at Stone Farm for a time before being sold to Gestüt Görlsdorf in Germany. After his stud career was done, he returned to his birthplace and lived there until his passing in 2007.
