Man o' War and Secretariat were actually quite similar in size. Both were large, flaming red giants of horses who generally dominated their foes.
Man o' War gets the nod in my book as he did not have to offer excuses for any of his races. His lone defeat is STILL the subject of controversy, and there were whispers at the time that the race had been "fixed." The Jockey Club denied the licenses of both Loftus and Knapp (jockey on Upset) in the year following that infamous race.
Secretariat really shouldn't be vilified as sometimes we MAN O' WAR devotees may tend to so (perhaps as backlash to the fervor of the Secretariat sect....) as he also turned in some amazing performances.
A friend of mine summed up the difference between Man o' War and Secretariat in one very succinct sentence... "Secretariat's Belmont performance was what Man o' War turned in almost EVERY time he set foot on the track!"
BTW - Bayakoa was the Queen in that fateful race with Go For Wand. I was a huge Bayakoa fan, but I found no pleasure in her victory that day. It was sad that one gallant filly gave her life for the sport, and the other gallant mare would forever be associated with that tragedy.
