Barbaro Statue-More Popular than Earned

After Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro died his owners, the Jacksons, wanted him to be buried at Churchill Downs, the site of his greatest victory. They comissioned a statue which was unveiled earlier in the Spring Meet. It's a lovely statue, the first racing one ever to feature the horse in full flight with all four hooves off the ground (one of their requirements, the other being the statue must feature jockey Edgar Prado too). It stands right outside Gate 1 and is a photo hotspot and a nice welcome to a local landmark.


But.


Before I sound hardhearted let me say first that I thought Barbaro was a good racehorse. Like a lot of racing fans I was rooting for him to recover after his injury in the Preakness. I even sent a get well card to the Bolton Center but a statue...really? Shouldn't statuary be reserved for the truly great? The undisputed great?

Barbaro really only won 2 races of any consequence which is a pretty skimpy record for a permanent memorial. I think it's fair to say that he's more well known for being a landmark test case patient than a racing superstar. And yes, I'd much rather see a statue in that spot as opposed to a beer stand or a line of port-a-potties but I also feel that this kind of real estate is valuable and any kind of memorial should be carefully considered. And if that makes me hardhearted well, then I guess I'm hardhearted.