Peter Pan The Forgotten Story of Phar Lap's Successor

When he died, they said there would never be another Phar Lap. Yet in just a few months there came a horse so good, a colt so suddenly brilliant, that everyone was asking: was this the next Phar Lap? Born in 1929, Peter Pan debuted on Australian racetracks just six weeks after Phar Lap's death in 1932. Within six months, he had won five of his first seven starts, including the world's greatest two-mile handicap&;the Melbourne Cup. The Sydney Sportsman called him a "Super Horse." The Sporting Globe wrote: "Another Phar Lap takes the stage." He could win from seven furlongs to two miles, across any track, against the best racehorses Australia had ever seen. And in 1934, when Peter Pan won his second Melbourne Cup, only the second horse in history to do so, his glory should have been sealed. But somehow, over the years, Australia forgot him. This is the story of the horse that came next, the brilliant, consistent Peter Pan whose hapless timing in 1932 meant he would never be remembered. Casting off the shadow of Phar Lap, it is the tale of the wealthy gentleman owner, the Hall of Fame trainer, and the famous jockeys who guided Peter Pan to 23 rapturous victories between 1932 and 1936. It is a tale of fortune during the Great Depression, of the coming of a champion when people least expected one, and an attempt to jog Australia's memory and restore the standing of our other great racing hero.