Man o' War
Man o' War next entered the Potomac Handicap at Havre de Grace Racetrack in Maryland on September 18. Man o' War was assigned 138 pounds, conceding from 24 to 34 pounds to his rivals, which included Kentucky Derby winner Paul Jones. Man o' War faced an early challenge from Blazes then turned back a late run by Wildair to win by lengths while breaking the track record by seconds. Although Man o' War was not seriously challenged, the high weight and a poorly maintained racing surface took a toll: Man o' War came out of the race with a swollen tendon on his right foreleg.
The final start of Man o' War's career came in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, in the Kenilworth Park Gold Cup on October 11. The event was so highly anticipated that it became the first horserace to be filmed in its entirety, with the resulting footage later shown in movie theaters across the country. The race was originally intended to be a face off between the three great horses of the time: Man o' War, Sir Barton and Exterminator. However, the owners of Sir Barton and Man o' War agreed to a distance of miles, which was too short for Exterminator to run his best, and agreed to a weight-for-age format, under which the older Exterminator would concede weight to Man o' War. Therefore, Exterminator was not entered, and in fact raced that same day on a different track.
Man o' War
In 1920, Johnny Loftus was denied a renewal of his jockey's license by The Jockey Club, a development that was rumored to be related to Man o' War's defeat in the Sanford. He was replaced as Man o' War's rider by Clarence Kummer. Over the winter, Man o' War had grown to high and filled out to about with a 72-inch girth.
Riddle decided early on to restrict Man o' War to races within his own age division, in large part because the most valuable races in the country were restricted to three-year-olds. He decided not to enter Man o' War in the Kentucky Derby because it was run only a few days before his preferred target, the Preakness Stakes, which was held close to the Riddle farm where Man o' War had spent the winter. Riddle also did not like racing in Kentucky and believed it was too early in the year for a young horse to go a mile and a quarter. Thus, Man o' War did not have a chance to complete what would later be known as the U.S. Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. The previous year, Sir Barton had won the three races, which gained in prestige and importance 10 years later when Gallant Fox accomplished the same feat under a great deal of media attention.