Bolingbroke (foaled 1937 in Kentucky) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that won top-level races on New York State tracks including the Manhattan Handicap three times. In his 1942 Manhattan win, under jockey Herb Lindberg, Bolingbroke set a new United States record time of 2:27 3/5 for 1 1/2 miles on dirt while defeating the 1941 U.S. Triple Crown winner, Whirlaway.
Bred by major racing stable and racetrack owner Joseph E. Widener at his Elmendorf Farm in Fayette County, Kentucky, Bolingbroke was a son of Equipoise, a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee and six-time U.S. National Champion, including twice as Horse of the Year. BolingbrokeâÂÂs dam was Wayabout, also owned by Joseph Widener. WayoutâÂÂs other notable progeny in racing was Whiffenpoof, a gelded foal of 1946. Their damsire was Fair Play, another successful runner and outstanding stallion that was a three-time Leading sire in North America (1920, 1924, 1927) and also as the Leading broodmare sire in North America (1931, 1934, 1938). Fair Play too was voted a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame member as part of the 1956 class of inductees.