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Home › Guides › Racing Terms

What is a thoroughbred racehorse?

Mike BrunkerMB
Horse Betting Expert · former Las Vegas Review-Journal racing writer
Updated November 2026 · 2 min read   𝕏inRJ
Horse racing journalist and handicapper who covered the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Belmont and Breeders’ Cup for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
HORSE BETTING GUIDE · RACING TERMS
Reviewed by the Horse.bet Team
Thoroughbred racehorseHORSE RACING EXPLAINEDIN SHORTThe term thoroughbred dates describes “a breed ofhorse developed in England for racing andjumping,” according to the Encyclopedia Britannica.GOOD TO KNOWThe thoroughbred was created by cross breeding “Arab” and “Barb”horses from the Middle East with European stock in an effort to createhorses that could run faster over a longer period – a particularlydesirable quality during battle.horse.bet — betting guides
What is a thoroughbred racehorse? — explained: The term thoroughbred dates describes “a breed of horse developed in England for racing and jumping,” according to the Encyclopedia Britannica .

The term thoroughbred dates describes “a breed of horse developed in England for racing and jumping,” according to the Encyclopedia Britannica .

The thoroughbred was created by cross breeding “Arab” and “Barb” horses from the Middle East with European stock in an effort to create horses that could run faster over a longer period – a particularly desirable quality during battle.

All modern thoroughbreds trace back to three foundational sires brought back to England to be bred with the so-called “royal mares” in the king’s barns: The Byerly Turk (imported in 1689), the Darley Arabian (after 1700), and the Godolphin Barb (about 1730).

The effort to breed faster racehorses has succeeded, but it also appears to have unintended consequences, as the modern thoroughbred is nowhere near as durable as its forbears.

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