Tommy Smith spotted a horse in 1967 that would turn into a champion Australian galloper

Black Onyx was foaled in 1965 and was by Pipe Of Peace out of the mare Organdie (by Delirium)

Pipe Of Peace was imported by Woodlands Stud from England in 1958. This stallion came to Australia with a big reputation; he had won many great races and was himself by an outstanding champion (Supreme Court) and out of a champion mare (Red Briar). He was the perfect stallion.

One of the great horses he produced was Black Onyx, and as he walked through the sales ring in 1967, he garnished very little attention. If he had not been by Pipe Of Peace he would have most probably been passed in. But Tommy Smith saw something in this horse; something no one else did. When Tommy Smith bid just under $3000 for Black Onyx on behalf of the Bootle family, everyone thought he had gone mad. This yearling appeared to be in poor condition during the sales presentation, but it successfully met the criteria established by the experienced Tommy Smith. Approximately 6% of the initial Melbourne Cup prize in 1967 was $3000. Today, that sum would be roughly $200,000, which, while substantial, falls short of the typical cost of an Australian yearling.

As a two year old, Black Onyx won his first three starts then was unplaced in the Golden Slipper. He then won the Sires’ before being unplaced in the Champagne. After his two-year-old season, Black Onyx had earnings of over $35,000, so in his first season he had already paid 10 times on his owner’s investment. The value of Tommy Smith’s expert eye in this case was huge! As a three-year-old, Black Onyx ran second in a Newmarket, unplaced in a Doncaster, unplaced in a Stradbroke then won the Doomben 10,000 from nowhere. Tommy Smith clearly had an eye for history, because after winning the Dommben 10,000 sprint race, Black Onyx was backed up in the Doomben Cup over 2000m. No horse had won this remarkable double since Bernborough in 1946.

Black Onyx was already a champion sprinter when he turned four, but it was in this season that he allowed his owners to retire on his winnings. He won the Doomben 10,000 again in 1970 (he was the first horse to ever do it), the Newmarket, the Lightning, the Tramways, and the Hill Stakes. He was also placed in the Stradbroke, the Futurity, the Doncaster, the All-Aged Stakes and the Linlithgow Stakes. He also again ran in the Doomben Cup as well as the Epsom and the Caulfield Cup. Black Onyx had just one win as a five-year-old, but it was in this year that he suffered his second bleeding attack and was banned for life from Australian racing. This was a very sad day for the owners, despite his huge career earnings. After bleeding in the Hill Stakes in Sydney, and again in the Futurity Stakes in Melbourne, he was sent to the USA where he was given drugs to prevent bleeding, winning 6 of his 15 races there including the 1973 Phoenix Gold Cup

EARNINGS - $133,000

1968 AJC Sires' Produce Stakes

1969-70 Doomben 10,000

1969 Hill Stakes

1970 Lightning Stakes 

1969 Tramway Handicap

1970 Newmarket Handicap

1971 C F Orr Stakes