1881 Kentucky Derby

Hindoo was a 3-1 favorite heading into Kentucky Derby. Ridden by Jim McLaughlin, when the race started, Hindoo, as expected, took the lead. Then, at the halfway pole, Lexex took the lead. As the horses went into the turn, Hindoo regained the lead, and when he entered the stretch he was in command and won by four lengths going away.

After the Derby

On September 1, 1881, Hindoo won his 19th consecutive race in a purse event at Sheepshead Bay Race Track. His winning streak ended six days later when he finished third in the September Handicap at Sheepshead.

Hindoo also won: Colt and Filly Stakes, Alexander Stakes, Tennessee Stakes, Juvenile Stakes, Jockey Club Stakes, Criterion Stakes, Tremont Hotel Stakes, Blue Ribbon Stakes, Clark Stakes, Tidal Stakes, Coney Island Stakes, Ocean Stakes, Lorillard Stakes, Monmouth Sweepstakes, Travers Stakes, Sequel Stakes, United States Hotel Stakes, Kenner Stakes, Louisville Cup, Merchants' Stakes, Turf Handicap, Coney Island Handicap, Coney Island Cup, Champion Stakes, Jersey Stakes, and St. Leger Stakes.

He placed second in the Day Boat Line Stakes, Brighton Beach Cap, and Dixiana Stakes. Hindoo finished third in the Windsor Hotel Stakes and the September Cup.

In thirty five starts, Hindoo was never out of the money. He won thirty times, was second three times, and was third twice. As a three-year-old, he won the 1881 Kentucky Derby in a season where he recorded eighteen straight wins over the course of a few months— nineteen if a dead-heat run-off on the same day is counted. Over the course of his racing career, he won $71,875, making him America's leading money earner. In 1881, he was America's Champion Three-Year-Old Male.^[1]