Half a century ago, Secretariat put on one of the greatest performance of all times – winning the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths and capturing the Triple Crown. But the road to the legendary achievement started a year earlier at the Saratoga Race Course.

“No other racehorse, in my opinion, could’ve done the things that he did, particularly during that five-week stretch of the Triple Crown in 1973,” said Mark Cusano, a retired horse racing journalist.

Secretariat, the horse that ran like a tremendous machine in 1973, was the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years, and did it in record-breaking fashion. But before he became a household name, Secretariat as a 2-year-old showed off his potential in 1972 at the Saratoga Race Course.

“He used an allowance race as a bridge between his maiden win downstate and the Sanford, which was his first real test,” said Cusano, who covered The Spa for 35 years.

Back then, the Saratoga meet was just 24 days. Secretariat ran three times that summer, including the Sanford Stakes, going up against Linda’s Chief, the only horse ever favored to beat Secretariat.

“Linda’s Chief was trained by Al Scotti, and Al didn’t think his colt could possibly get beat,” Cusano said. “And after the race in an interview, they asked Al Scotti, ‘Where are you going next with Linda’s Chief?’ And he said, ‘Anywhere that big red horse doesn’t go, that’s where I’ll go.’ ”

Coming from last, that big red horse found a small opening and burst his way through to an easy three-length win with jockey Ron Turcotte aboard. A week and a half later, Secretariat showed off the acceleration once again, this time winning the Hopeful Stakes by five lengths.

“He was still a baby. He was a big baby, but he was still a baby,” Cusano said. “A lightly raced horse, and to watch what he accomplished in those two races was very exciting.”

That set expectations pretty high when Secretariat began his pursuit for the Triple Crown. But "Big Red" answered the bell with record times that still stand today in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes.

After winning the Triple Crown, Secretariat made another appearance at Saratoga in the Whitney Stakes, and it was his first time running against older horses. However, it just wasn’t Secretariat’s day.

“His last workout prior to the Whitney was an un-Secretariat like workout,” Cusano said. “When they loaded him in the gate, he slammed his face against the stall doors and broke them open.”

During the race, Allen Jerkens-trained Onion controlled the pace and went on to pull off the upset by a length, leaving the Saratoga crowd stunned.

Despite losing the Whitney, Cusano said Secretariat’s impact on Saratoga and horse racing was unprecedented.

“He transcended racing. He had an impact on all of sports and all of society,” he said.

Cusano and many others call Secretariat the greatest racehorse of all time. It’s easy to see why. Even five decades later, whether it’s Churchill Downs, Belmont Park, or even Saratoga, Secretariat’s legacy still looms large.

“The way he won each of those races, I look back at it now 50 years later, and it’s still hard for me to comprehend,” Cusano said.