Question: How did Bourbon War get his name?

Answer: Spirits and Springsteen.

When Mike McMahon and Jamie Hill decided to keep the Tapit colt they’d intended to pinhook, they knew that he’d have “bourbon” in his name. They race in the name of Bourbon Lane Stable, and in this age of branding and name recognition, all of their horses carry the name of the unofficial official drink of Thoroughbred horse racing.

The rest of it was up to Greg Burns, whose Lake Star Stable purchased a partnership in the colt a little over a year ago.

Like McMahon and Hill, Burns has his own naming tradition.

“We name our horses after Bruce Springsteen songs,” he explained, speaking from his home in Saratoga Springs, NY. “Titles, lyrics or characters. As soon as we got the horse, Mike and Jamie told us, ‘We got Bourbon, you got the other half.’”

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Bourbon War at Gulfstream Park. Photo credit Leslie Martin