Steve Asmussen lands 8,000th career victory

Steve Asmussen reached a notable landmark when he became only the second trainer in American racing history to record 8,000 victories when Lookin At Lee took the third race at Churchill Downs on Saturday.

According to Equibase statistics, only the late Dale Baird, the winningmost trainer of all time with 9,445 wins, leads Asmussen in career victories in North America.

Notable landmark: Lookin At Lee (Ricardo Santana) scores at Churchill Downs to provide trainer Steve Asmussen with the 8,000th success of his careerCredit: Churchill Downs/Coady Photography

Speaking to the Blood-Horse, Asmussen reflected on his achievement, saying: "It's an incredible accomplishment and I'm extremely proud of the all the help we have, they put so much hard work and passion into this, and how fortunate we've been to have such great horses."

Hall of Fame trainer Asmussen, 52, also trained Curlin to win two races in Dubai in 2008, including the World Cup. Leading trainer by races won nine times in the States, he holds the world record for single-year victories with 650 in 2009 and has twice won the Eclipse Award as outstanding trainer.

He has trained the Horse of the Year on four occasions with Curlin (2007, 2008), Rachel Alexandra (2009) and Gun Runner (2017).

Asmussen's landmark success came in an $76,000 allowance race in which Lookin At Lee was winning for the first time since coming second to Always Dreaming 12 months previously in the Kentucky Derby.