American Pharoah has garnered national attention after winning the 2015 Kentucky Derby and 2015 Preakness Stakes. While he’s shown his strength and agility on the track, American Pharoah almost didn’t make the cut when he was first put up for sale.

After being reviewed by horse racing experts, American Pharoah was marked as an average horse and was appraised for $300,000, a small amount of money in the horse racing world yet bidders still weren’t interested in purchasing the colt. Ahmed Zayat, American Pharoah’s breeder, decided to keep the colt and started training him—a risk that would soon pay off.

For his horse racing debut, the horse was nervous throughout the race. American Pharoah finished his first race in fifth place out of eight opponents, a shaky start for the young thoroughbred. Within that same season, the young thoroughbred proved his agility on the field becoming a fan favorite, ending the season with the title “American Champion Two Year-Old Male Horse.”

The horse’s performance improved in the 2015 season. At the beginning of the 2015 season, American Pharoah continued to surpass expectations with wins at the Arkansas Derby and Southwest Stakes, but it wasn’t until the winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes that he would truly capture national attention. The horse who was considered immature and an unlikely winner became the first winner of the Triple Crown in thirty seven years.