Contrary to the first word in his name, his race tactics were quite overt. You could just about count on him to always be within striking distance of the front. And he ended up being in front at the wire several times in his career.

What's more, he could run fast. Most of his starts came in sprints, and it was going short where he found most of his victories. That was in itself an irony, for he was sired by a horse whose wins all came at a mile or longer.

Though the majority of his races came in Southern California, this bay runner saw his share of different racetracks in the United States. He showed he could be competitive everywhere he went, including what was his lone start overseas.

And when he was retired, he stood as an accomplished racehorse thanks to being both a Grade I and Group I winner, as well as a two-time Breeders' Cup champion.

In three starts in 2011, Secret Circle demonstrated his talent early. No one could match him as he graduated first out at Del Mar and followed up with Santa Anita's Jack Goodman Stakes. Trainer Bob Baffert and the ownership group of Michael E. Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman clearly saw something special in the colt, for they sent him to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Sprint at Churchill Downs. He confirmed their collective belief in him by taking the event to close out an undefeated juvenile campaign.

Naturally, Secret Circle's record put him as a horse to watch on the Kentucky Derby trail. The 2012 season ended up being a short one for the Eddington offspring, and it turned out to be a campaign devoid of any sprinting. First came a second in the one-mile Sham Stakes at Santa Anita, and next was a trip to Oaklawn Park, long a destination for Baffert's Derby prospects.

Though Secret Circle gained notoriety as a sprinter, he actually gave a good account of himself routing. He added the title of graded stakes winner to his name by taking the Grade III Southwest and Grade II Rebel Stakes before finishing second to stablemate and eventual Kentucky Derby runner-up Bodemeister in the Grade I Arkansas Derby.

Secret Circle did not race for the rest of 2012 or most of the next year, but he was back to sprinting in the fall of 2013 at Santa Anita. First came a win in the allowance ranks, which served as a prep for what became the biggest victory of his career in the Grade I Breeders' Cup Sprint. In what was a truly game effort, Secret Circle overcame a wide trip in the stretch with a brilliant closing kick late to take the big race (and beat reigning Champion Sprinter Trinniberg).

It is a unique accomplishment to win two Breeders' Cup races, especially if the contests are different. But the Sprint also gave the colt a measure of redemption. After missing out on the spring classics the previous year, he finally got his shining moment in front of a huge crowd.

While he was no slouch at a route, sprinting fit Secret Circle like a glove.

Returning for a five-year old campaign, Secret Circle went winless in 2014. Even so, he was still in the top three by the end of almost every race he entered. Exclusively competing against graded stakes company, he placed in events like the Grade II Palos Verdes Stakes and Santa Anita Sprint Championship, and even finished second in the Breeders' Cup Sprint. He even showed he could still be in the mix going long, as he finished second in the Grade I Cigar Mile (a one-turn mile) at Aqueduct. The sprints Secret Circle took part in had fast final times, all of them below 1:09. And he was third or better in all but one of those. The lone off the board result (which was also the only one he ever experienced) came in the Grade III Midnight Lute Stakes, where Secret Circle was not as close to the leader as usual. Still, he did not lose by much, finishing fourth and just a couple lengths behind at the wire.

He may not have won as much at that point in his career, but Secret Circle was still fast.

The connections brought him back for a couple more starts in 2015. He started the campaign off with a second in the Grade II Palos Verdes, and then came his only trip out of the country. Sent to Meydan Racecourse, the Secret Circle of old returned in the Group I Dubai Golden Shaheen. Sprinting once again, Secret Circle tracked the pace before unleashing a surge to the front. He held off a charging Super Jockey to win his career finale and get his first victory in well over a year. And it gave him the chance to prove anyone who thought he could not win again wrong.

Now a stallion, Secret Circle has sired graded stakes winner Our Secret Agent and graded stakes placed runner Howbeit, both of whom have emulated their father as successful sprinters.

With a record of eight wins, six seconds and a third in sixteen starts along with more than $3 million in earnings, Secret Circle put his running prowess to good use. And while the ability to route (which he got from Eddington) did not hurt, it was that talent for sprinting that gave him his greatest moments.