Peter Pan and Phar Lap never met on the racetrack, but trainer Frank McGrath had no doubt which was the better: "Peter Pan", he said, "would have beaten Phar Lap from six furlongs to six miles. I studied Phar Lap and I trained Peter Pan".

Biography

TRAINER: F. McGrath

OWNERS: Rodney Dangar

RACE RECORD/STAKE MONEY: 39 starts: 23 wins, 6 seconds, 1 third/£34,988

Major Wins 

• Melbourne Cup (twice)
• AJC Derby
• AJC St Leger
• Melbourne Stakes (twice)
• AJC Autumn Plate (twice)
• AJC Cumberland Plate (twice)
• AJC All-Aged Stakes

About

Peter Pan was a handsome horse. With his flaxen mane and tail, brilliant chestnut coat, and his fine head, he was a public attraction even before he set foot in a race.

Early in his three-year-old season, Peter Pan showed his class when he beat the former Melbourne Cup winner, Nightmarch, in the 1932 Hill Stakes. Then followed wins in the AJC Derby, AJC St Leger, Melbourne Stakes, and at only his seventh start, the Melbourne Cup. His Cup win was a triumph of courage and stamina. Nearly knocked off his feet during the race, he recovered from a seemingly hopeless position to win by a half neck.

As a four and five-year-old Peter Pan showed his versatility by winning six of his eight starts over a mile, smashing the Australian record in the process.

The 1934 Melbourne Cup set the seal on Peter Pan's greatness. Carrying 9st 10lbs (62.5kg) on a rain sodden track, he was given little chance of success. But in one of the great performances in Australian turf history, Peter Pan won his second Cup by three lengths, becoming only the second horse to achieve that feat.

Peter Pan was inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame in 2003.

Image Source: Australian Racing Museum Collection