A week after entering hospice care, legendary Thoroughbred trainer D. Wayne Lukas died at his home in Louisville, Kentucky, on June 28 at the age of 89, Churchill Downs announced.
Lukas had a MRSA blood infection that caused significant damage to his heart and digestive system, his family said in a statement on June 22. The family stated that Lukas declined an aggressive treatment plan, intending to spend his remaining time at home.
The Hall of Famer’s career spanned more than six decades, working with horses that earned victories at notable race tracks. Longtime assistant, Sebastian ‘Bas’ Nicholl, will continue running operations for Lukas Enterprises Inc. out of Barn 44 on Churchill’s backside, where Lukas stabled since 1989.
D. Wayne Lukas’ Hall of Fame career
Lukas made a name for himself in Southern California, earning his first documented win as a thoroughbred trainer at Santa Anita Park on Oct. 20, 1977, at age 42.
He would train thoroughbreds full-time in 1978 with seven horses and became known throughout his career for his trademark barns, which featured a white picket fence, beds of flowers, and painted feed tubs used for decoration.
Lukas had 4,967 documented thoroughbred victories (637 of the 1,105 stakes wins were graded) during his career. His horses earned more than $301 million from 30,607 starts, according to Churchill Downs.
The trainer has won the Kentucky Derby four times and the Longines Kentucky Oaks five times during his career. A total of 26 horses trained by Lukas went on to win Eclipse Award championships, including three that were tabbed as Horse of the Year.
Lukas’ 15 Triple Crown races are second only to trainer Bob Baffert, who has 17 in his career.
‘A special man, he’s been a great friend and very much a father figure to me,’ Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Kenny McPeek told The Courier Journal. ‘He raised the standards for our sport to the highest level. An amazing man.’