The Wedding Gift
by Lisa Harkema
He was designated as a wedding gift to circumvent export restrictions after WWII, then caused despair when he refused to train. In stepped Count Orsi Mangelli to restore Mighty Ned’s career, starting a fantastic turnaround that lead to two Prix d’Amerique-wins and a reputation as one of the best American imports in Europe ever.
Bred by the famed Walnut Hall Farm in Kentucky, Mighty Ned was sold at the farm’s yearling auction in early October 1943 when he was bought by trainer Tom Berry, on behalf of Joseph F Burke of Plainfield, NJ, for $4,600. 12 months later Burke sold all but one of his horses because of his declining health, choosing to keep only Mighty Ned. After two unsuccessful starts at 2, the big, burly colt was turned out. Migthy Ned came back much improved the following year, though. On Jul 31, 1945, he finished 5-3 in the National Trot at Goshen, Titan Hanover, winning both heats with ease. However, Mighty Ned’s performances were better than the placings suggest: in the first heat the colt got in a traffic jam and broke stride in the first turn but recovered nicely. In the second Mighty Ned “came from seventh position going down the back stretch and finished with plenty of speed in third position.”
10 days later the horse finished fourth in the Hambletonian after a 3-3 finish, Titan Hanover again sweeping both heats. Burke thus earned $3,000, recuperating over half of the purchase price. Berry would later state that the reason Mighty Ned did not fare better was “that the races at Old Orchard [in July] were called off and he was not tight for the Hambletonian.”
Opting for an easier race next, Berry then took the Volomite son to the 2:15 trot at the Great Darke Country Fair in Greenville, OH, two weeks later. Mighty Ned was third courtesy of a 4-3-2 finishing, the Willglow-son Flash winning all three heats for “Doc” Parshall. Though he didn’t win, the race clearly did the colt good. On Sep 6, he finished second to Dr Spencer in the Review Futurity after a 3-2-2 finish. A week later he won he Reading Fair Futurity, held at the Trenton Fair because of the army’s use of the Reading Fair grounds, after finishing 2-1-1 in the three heats, the latter won in 2:06 (1.18,3).
Mighty Ned made it two wins in a row when he won the Lafayette Hotel Stake against older trotters at the opening day at the Lexington meeting, Bob Plaxico filling in for an injured Tom Berry. Mighty Ned finished strongly in each heat to win in 2:05 1/4 and 2:04 3/4 (1.17,8 and 1.17,5), respectively. He wouldn’t make it three in three, though, after a 4-4 finish in the American Stake at Lexington on Oct 2 caused him to finish out of the money. Two wins and a 2:04 3/4 (1.17,5) record was thus the result of Mighty Ned’s three-year-old season.