Question 3:

Would a clone of Secretariat win the Kentucky Derby ?

Secretariat is probably the most recognized name among horses. He was a phenomenal 3 year old colt which won the American triple crown in 1973.  Many consider him to be the best Thoroughbred race horse of all time. 

So, would a clone of Secretariat be another super-race horse?   Secretariat was probably the perfect example of his genetic type.  But aspects of development, such as the number of times a cell divides or how far it migrates in the developing embryo are not under strict genetic control.  For example, competitive drive may be enhanced when a brain cell divides 200 times rather than 100 times, but the number of divisions may be a chance event during embryonic development and not strictly determined by genes.  It may be that during development of Secretariat every progenitor cell in the brain, skeletal muscle, heart and lungs divided and migrated just the right distance.  He came to our attention because everything from genetics, development, management and racing was done just right.   

Would ten clones of Secretariat, raised and trained the same, cross the finish line together in record time?  Almost certainly not. Even if genetics, management and racing are exactly the same for all ten, the chance events happening during development would result in small differences which would be significant in winning.  

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