The Guinness World Records recognizes a two-year-old thoroughbred named Winning Brew as the fastest racehorse running 43.97 mph. However, most horses run between 25 to 30 mph. When referencing humans' speed, it's usually in context to distance, the fastest 100 meters, the fastest mile, or the fastest marathon.
The fact of the matter is that horses can handily outrun a human being over such a distance. The fastest speed achieved by a horse on record is 43.97 mph, by Winning Brew in the United States in May of 2008. That would equate to a 100m time of a little over 5 seconds at top speed throughout.
On flat terrain, it would be a no-brainer: horses clearly have a significant advantage over humans. With their lean and muscular physique, thoroughbreds can reach speeds of up to 55 mph, while the world's fastest human, Usain Bolt, lags behind with a top speed of only 27 mph.
Racehorses are generally trained to reach speeds of up to 40 to 44 mph or 64 to 70 km/h. Most of them can only maintain this speed for around 20 seconds. There are also breeds that are faster than others because of breeding and genetics.
In 1936 at Havana, Cuba, Olympic champion Jesse Owens (1913-1980) ran against a horse in the 100-yard dash. Well, actually the horse had to run 140 yards and Owens just 100. Owens ran in 9.9 seconds and won by 15-20 yards. It was his first race as a professional enabling him to be paid for the event.
Defending Olympic champion Usain Bolt may be the fastest human on two legs, but he would struggle to outpace a raft of animals, including horses, which would leave him nearly 10 seconds behind over 200 metres.
It's only the fourth time that a human has successfully beaten an equine at the annual Man v. Horse race in Wales. No, it wasn't the Kentucky Derby, but equine athletes in Wales hit the racecourse on Saturday—only they weren't going hoof-to-hoof with each other.
Did you know that the highest recorded race speed for a Thoroughbred was set at Penn National Race Course in Grantville, PA on May 14, 2008? According to the Guiness Book of World Records, this feat was set by the 2-year old filly Winning Brew — clocking a speed of 43.97 mph (70.76 km/h).
The top speed at which the world's fastest equine sprinter, the Quarter Horse, has been clocked is 55 mph. The fastest recorded race time for a Thoroughbred is 44 mph.
Secretariat set speed records at multiple distances and on different racing surfaces. But the Guinness World Record recognizes Winning Brew as the fastest horse ever.
This is a Guinness World Record was achieved by a horse called Winning Brew. She was trained by Francis Vitale in the United States. The race was recorded at the Penn National Race Course, Grantville, Pennsylvania, United States. Winning Brew covered the quarter-mile (402 metres) in 20.57 seconds.
They have a maximum speed of more than 110km/hr. Cheetahs could run the 100m sprint in about 6 seconds, leaving Usain Bolt's world record of 9:58sec in their wake. With their long legs and body, claws that have evolved to grip the ground and propel them, and a long tail for balance, cheetahs are built for speed.
Did you know that hippos are very fast runners and can run up 48 kmph, this is faster than Usain Bolt (his top speed is 44.72 kmph, still pretty quick🤣) - I think that's probably where the similarities end!!
As records currently stand, the top speed ever recorded by a wild horse was 54 mph, and was set by a Mustang. This is considered particularly impressive, given that it is only 1 mph slower than the top speeds recorded for the fastest domesticated horse breeds, the Thoroughbred and the Quarter Horse (55 mph).
Bear in mind that Usain Bolt, who holds the record for the world's fastest human, reached a top speed of 27.79 mph. Consequently, even he would be unable to escape from a tiger. Considering that most humans would be 10 mph slower than Bolt, it is obvious that no human would be able to outrun a tiger.
Although Secretariat still holds some track records to this day, and is arguably the faster horse, Phar Lap was a big weight carrier. They never competed against each other as their careers were decades apart, so it is unlikely the debate will ever be solved.
Secretariat's hindquarters were the main source of his power, with a sloped croup that extended the length of his femur. When in full stride, his hind legs were able to reach far under himself, increasing his drive. His ample girth, long back and well-made neck all contributed to his heart-lung efficiency.
Ranked #7 on our list, the typical Mustang can gallop at speeds of around 25 to 30 miles per hour, but they can potentially go even faster for short bursts. The mustang is considered the fastest horse among free-roaming horses in the U.S.
Their results showed that Seabiscuit had gene variants often found in good distance runners, as well as underlying variants that were often found in sprinting horses. “We found that Seabiscuit's genotype was very suggestive of what his actual race record was,” Tammariello says.
While it is true that the maximum output of a horse is around 15 horsepower, when you average the output of a horse over the course of a work day it ends up being around a horsepower. Watt defined this amount as "the amount of work required from a horse to pull 150 pounds out of a hole that was 220 feet deep".
We all know the story about Secretariat; it's even been made into a movie. Along with Man o' War, he is considered to be the best horse of all time. Even ESPN counted Secretariat as on of the Top 50 Athletes of the 20th Century during their countdown in 1999.
Zippy Chippy won the hearts of many fans. Zippy Chippy was a racehorse but he never won a single race. In his 100 races, he came close a few times, but he just never understood why all the other horses were in such a rush, reported CBS News.
Another famous white horse is Sodashi, a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse who won Grade 1 races including Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, Oka Sho (Japanese 1,000 Guineas), and Victoria Mile.