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From Aintree to the Cheltenham Festival, or the Ascot 2021 coming up this June, the thrill and excitement that comes with horse racing are mostly due to the adrenaline-pumping action of horses riding their jockeys to victory. Therefore, one of the most crucial factors at the racecourses is speed. It sets apart a horse from another.
While other conditions like stamina, the racing surface also come into play, how fast a horse can run is a strong determinant of how a race will end. What’s more, it makes some specific horse breeds popular as trainers and owners look out of these breeds when making a choice of acquiring one.
Perhaps, you are looking to go into the business of horse racing or simply wondering which of the horse breeds are the fastest. Check out this short article on the five fastest horse breeds in the world.
- Akhal Teke
Let’s kick off the list with one of the earliest racehorses, the Akhal Tekes. They are undoubtedly an ancient breed but there’s nothing ancient about their ability to move through the wind. Known for their metallic coat appearance, Akhal Tekes were originally bred by nomadic tribes for endurance. This allows them to move long distances effortlessly.
In the ancient world, they were famous as warhorses, and their roots can be traced to Turkmenistan. They average around just a little over 15.3 hands in height and weigh between sometimes weigh up to a thousand pounds. They are truly a unique fast breed.
- Quarter Horse
Being this one from a context, the Quarterhorse holds the record for the fastest breeds. Many times, Quarter Horses have been seen running at an impressive speed of 55mph or 88.5 km/hr. This breed originated in America hundreds of years ago. Their name typically came from the distances they frequently excel at, which is a quarter of a mile.
Quarter Horses are an athletic breed that dominates the horse racing world. They are compact and muscular that helps get around the barrel and explode to the subsequent barrel quickly.
- Thoroughbreds
Thoroughbreds are one of the dominating horse breeds in the racing industry. They are the fastest in the world and can race more than 6 furlongs. It might look biased, but there’s a race known as the Triple crown, specially organized for Thoroughbreds only.
This breed is known for its exceptionally long legs and lean muscular physique, making them run long distances. It will interest you to know that all Thoroughbreds can trace their bloodline to these impressive “speed demon” sires: Darley Arabian, Godolphin Barb, and Byerly Turk.
According to the Guinness book of world records, Winning Brew holds the record from the fastest Thoroughbred, with a clocked speed of 43.97 mph. At just only two years old, Winning brew entered the Guinness record in 2008 at the Penn National racecourse.
- Arabian horse
Originating from Arabia and are resilient horses originally bred to survive harsh environments like the deserts. Breeders from Europe had to cross-breed their local mare with Arabian stallions to produce breeds with endurance and speed. One of such resultant breeds is the Thoroughbreds. Arabian stallions have clocked 40m/hr in many races and are known to have the endurance for distances reaching 100miles.
- American Paint horses
These breeds have Quarter Horses breeding in their pedigree, which is evident in the performance at the racecourse. They originate from Spain but came to North America in the 1500s. Their sanctioned races are held across the United States every year.
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