Disney bought LucasfilmLtd. in 2012 and unveiled “The Drive Awakens” in 2015, which was the primary new movie within the collection since “Revenge of the Sith” debuted in 2005. “Star Wars: The Final Jedi” was the second film within the third trilogy adopted by “The Rise of Skywalker,” which debuted Dec. 20, 2019. In between “Solo: A Star Wars Story” debuted Could 25, 2018.

Extra not too long ago, Disney-plus ushered in a brand new period of Star Wars content material headlined by the critically acclaimed collection “The Mandalorian,” which has run for 3 seasons and consists of the extremely common Grogu, someday known as “Child Yoda.”

Different new Star Wars collection embody “The Ebook of Boba Fett,” “Andor,” and the 2023 hit “Ahsoka,” a collection based mostly on Darth Vader’s padawan (apprentice) Ahsoka Tano.

There are 4 issues I can actually dork out on: music, horse racing, baseball and Star Wars. I used to be six when “The Empire Strikes Again” got here out in 1980 and 9 when “Return of the Jedi” debuted in 1983, so I actually don’t bear in mind life earlier than Star Wars. It’s at all times been part of my existence and having two children who spend their free time firing blasters at one another and dueling with lightsabers has solely strengthened my ardour for Star Wars, regardless of my disappointment with the three prequel motion pictures within the collection.

So once I obtained an e-mail suggesting I check out among the racehorses named after the fictional characters in Star Wars, I jumped on the probability to observe via on the concept and I used to be shocked on the attain of the collection inside horse racing. The title Star Wars is listed as completely unavailable with The Jockey Membership Registry, however there proved loads of different choices. From storm troopers and bounty hunters to Admiral Ackbar (he’s a squid commander!) to Tatooine, Star Wars has had a big impression on horse racing for many years, together with current Grade 1-placed sprinter Child Yoda, a career-earner of greater than half 1,000,000 bucks.

Let’s get began with the 2 most profitable of the horses with Star Wars-themed names: Skywalker and Lando.

Bred and raced by Oak Cliff Steady and educated by Michael Whittingham, Skywalker was by the sire Relaunch out of a mare named Daring Captive, exhibiting his house owners possessed superb creativity. The primary hero of the primary trilogy, Luke Skywalker, is an aspiring fighter pilot (Relaunch) who later willingly palms himself over to the evil empire (Daring Captive) and a showdown with Darth Vader, which is his future.

Born in 1982 on the top of Star Wars hysteria, Skywalker gained eight of 20 profession begins, together with the 1985 Santa Anita Derby and 1986 Breeders’ Cup Basic. He went on to a second profession as a sire, opening up numerous potentialities to proceed the Star Wars development.

1986 BREEDERS’ CUP CLASSIC

A transparent front-runner for best-named horse by Skywalker is a 1997, Kentucky-bred filly by Skywalker out of a mare named Regal Gal, by Viceregal. Named Princess Leia, the filly bred by Arthur B. Hancock III and Thomas P. Tatham didn’t reside as much as her regal, Star Wars title — she was unraced — however there was one other.

Bred and raced by Hancock, Obi Wan Kenobi, by Skywalker, was born in 2003 and developed right into a stakes winner who earned $240,157. Out of Sugah, by Procida, the title was not as intelligent as Princess Leia, however hey, at the very least we all know the place a number of members of the Hancock household will likely be this weekend.

Actually, Hancock bred a 2003 gelding by Skywalker, named Han Solo, who completed within the high three in 13 of 31 begins, however with solely two wins, he undoubtedly was no Millennium Falcon.

For as many alternatives as Skywalker the sire offered to Thoroughbred breeders who additionally have been Star Wars followers, there have been surprisingly few elite runners with movie-related names. Skywalker’s greatest runner was champion Bertrando, who additionally went on to success as a sire. A Grade 1-placed filly named Fondly Remembered, by Skywalker, nonetheless, aptly describes how many individuals consider Star Wars.

Notes: A Mandalorian is a local of the planet Mandalore; Tatooine (2011) was bred in France by the Niarchos household.

DAGOBAH

Courtey of Wookieemedia

You possibly can simply make a case that German-bred Lando, presumably named after Billy D. Williams’s smooth-talking character Lando Calrissian, was simply as achieved if no more so than Skywalker on the racetrack.

Bred and raced by the brother-sister staff of Manfred and Janet-Leve Ostermann, Lando gained the German Derby in 1993 and the 1995 Japan Cup. By German sire Acatenango, whose dam was named Irritate, Lando gained 10 of 24 profession begins and earned greater than $3.4-million earlier than occurring to success as a sire with three champions and 16 group/graded stakes winners.

There have been only a few amongst Lando’s high runners the place it was even remotely potential to make a connection to Star Wars — Flying Champion and Land Baron — however he’s the sire of an unraced gelding born in 2011 named Calrissian.

Talking of Calrissian, there’s a completely different Calrissian, a German-bred Efisio gelding, who remains to be energetic on the racetrack in France who has 19 wins and 42 top-three finishes from 84 profession begins. A Texas-bred Quarter Horse named Lando Calrissian, born in 1980, gained 9 of 60 profession begins.

I really feel like I’ve gotten a bit longwinded, sort of just like the 142-minute “Assault of the Clones,” so let’s decide up the tempo for a dash via the various Star Wars-themed names via the years, beginning with the collection’ heroes.

Princess Leia has been a well-liked title. Along with the aforementioned filly by Skywalker, there was a 1976 Florida-bred filly named Princess Leia by Maintain Your Peace out of a mare named Area Gal who gained considered one of 9 begins. There additionally was a Japanese-bred Princess Leia, a Washington-bred Princess Leia M D and a German-bred Princess Lea.

Let’s transfer on to the Jedi, beginning with a horse named Jedi who gained two of 24 begins and was stakes-placed in Europe. Bred in Nice Britain and born in 2006, the gelding by Pivotal is out of a mare named Threefold.

Along with the beforehand talked about Obi Wan Kenobi, there have been two racehorses named Obi Wan, the higher of which was a 2003 Pennsylvania-bred by Not For Love who gained 10 of 59 begins, together with a stakes race at Presque Isle Downs in 2003. There additionally was a Virginia-bred Obiwankenobi who gained 4 races from 1977 to 1982 and spent his closing two seasons as a steeplechaser.

For as nice as Grasp Yoda was within the Star Wars collection, he was not represented too properly on the racetrack. A California-bred named Yoda born in 2002 was winless in 5 begins and a Kentucky-bred Yoda, by Proudest Roman, born in 1979 was unraced.

Racehorses have been named after Jedi akin to Mace Windu, Ahsoka Tano and Package Fisto, however none of them made it to the winners’ circle.

Two United States-bred racehorses have been named Insurgent Alliance, together with a California-bred Skywalker gelding co-bred by the aforementioned Thomas P. Tatham who had three wins, six seconds and a 3rd in 31 begins. He was out of the Secretariat mare Risen Starlet. The opposite Insurgent Alliance was bred in Oklahoma and born in 2005 (by Quiet American out of the Skywalker mare Woman Skywalker) however was unraced.

Apparently, I’m not the one one who has an affinity for Admiral Ackbar. A member of the amphibious species Mon Calamari, his two most well-known traces are: “It’s a lure!” when he finds out the deflector defend is up and the Demise Star is totally operational in “Return of the Jedi,” and “Could the Drive be with us,” earlier than the Battle of Endor. 

It was a revelation on my son’s sixth birthday when he opened up an Admiral Ackbar motion determine from considered one of his grandparents that I regarded in the back of the field and exclaimed, “He’s a squid! I can’t consider I by no means noticed that earlier than, he’s a squid!” In my household, that’s completely regular conduct. By the best way, the Thoroughbred Admiral Ackbar was a 2009 Kentucky-bred by Empire Maker (bred by Janis Whitham) who was unraced. The opposite was a Quarter Horse who didn’t win a race. I actually simply included him as a result of I’m a fan and due to this GIF:

by way of GIPHY

There have been a few different Han Solo racehorses, however neither achieved something on the racetrack, and sadly the identical goes for Han’s greatest pal (Corridor of Fame pun supposed) Chewbacca. Of the three horses named for the well-known Wookiee, solely Ontario-bred Chewbacca reached the winner’s circle. Born in 1976, he gained as soon as in 30 begins. Appears no person adopted C3PO’s recommendation and “Let the Wookiee win.”

No, poor Chewie had little success on the racetrack. A Quarter Horse named Chewie by no means made it to the races, neither did Quarter Horses named Wookie and Wookiee. Even Louisiana-bred Fuzzball, the title Han Solo known as Chewbacca in “The Empire Strikes Again,” was winless in 9 begins.

There was additionally a horse named after the fuzzy Ewoks, however alas the 1983 Massachusetts-bred Ewok, by Doc Hoss, didn’t have the identical success on the racetrack that his namesakes did in opposition to the empire in “Return of the Jedi.”

The second Star Wars Trilogy didn’t encourage the identical ardour amongst racehorse owners-breeders. Here’s a snapshot of a handful of them earlier than we transfer on to the “Darkish Aspect”:

Notes: There was a Texas-bred Quarter Horse named Padme Amidala who was unraced; it’s solely becoming that the horse named after Jar Jar Binks, undoubtedly essentially the most despised character within the Star Wars film collection amongst followers, was winless.

A number of worldwide racehorses have been named Darth Vader, however within the U.S. the closest we have now is Vader, a reputation used 3 times since 1978 and the entire horses have been winners. Such is the ability of the darkish aspect.

The newest of those additionally was essentially the most profitable. A 2008 Kentucky-bred named Vader (by Vindication out of a mare named Ultrafleet) gained eight of 40 begins and was a stakes competitor.

The opposite two named Vader each gained twice: a 1997 Ohio-bred by the sire Stalwars and a 1978 Michigan-bred by Sevastopol.

Vader’s Storm Troopers additionally proved particularly common amongst racing followers and fairly profitable:

• A 1980 Washington-bred named Storm Trooper, by Windy Tide, gained 11 races. 
• A 1993 Kentucky-bred Storm Trooper, by Diesis, gained seven of twenty-two races, together with the Grade 1 Hollywood Turf Cup in 1998 for coach Neil Drysdale. He was bred by Robert N. Clay & Airlie Stud.
• German-bred Storm Trooper, by Monsun, amassed $303,851 in earnings and completed third within the German Derby as a 3-year-old in 2003. He was bred by Baron Georg von Ullmann.

There was a pair of profitable Thoroughbreds named Bounty Hunter, though a case could possibly be made that there are many different inspirations for that title. One was a 2006 Indiana-bred by Salt Lake who gained 12 of 30 begins and the opposite is a 2011 Irish-bred by Bahamian County who remains to be energetic in Qatar.

Sadly, the 2 most well-known bounty hunters (not together with Han Solo) within the Star Wars collection — Boba Fett and his father Jango Fett — aren’t well-represented on the racetrack. The 1980 Minnesota-bred Boba Fett, by Kings Marc, was unraced, and an Arizona-bred Quarter Horse named Jango Fett additionally by no means reached the racetrack.

I’m positive I’ve missed various — I did discover an unraced blue or roan Appaloosa named Jabba the Hut.

There completely must be a very good Boba Fett racehorse and I’d recommend Padawan (the title for an apprentice Jedi) and Tusken Raider could be excellent names. As for planets, we’d like a Naboo, a Kamino and undoubtedly a Kashyyyk (house of the Wookiees and just like the Juddmonte horse Cacique). All of them can be found.

Should you plan on attending on what is predicted to be a record-setting opening weekend, get pleasure from and let’s preserve our fingers crossed that “The Drive Awakens” lives as much as the hype. For now, I’ll depart you with a handful of different horses impressed by Star Wars:

Editor’s Observe: This story was initially printed in 2015 and has been up to date.