Lukas joining Quarter Horse Hall of Fame

D. Wayne Lukas became the first person to be voted into both the Thoroughbred Hall of Fame and the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame on Friday when the American Quarter Horse Association announced that Lukas would be among its 2007 inductees.

Lukas was inducted into the Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame in 1999.

Lukas, 70, began his training career with Quarter Horses in 1968 and established his base in California in 1971. He switched to Thoroughbreds in 1978.

The 23 Quarter Horse champions he trained include Flight 109, Little Blue Sheep, Maskeo Lad, and She's Precious. Lukas was also the trainer of two-time Quarter Horse world champion Dash for Cash when the horse was shipped from Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico to California and won the 1976 Los Alamitos Derby.

Lukas was the leading Quarter Horse trainer by earnings for three consecutive years, 1974-76, and led all trainers in races won in 1970, 1974, and 1975.

Lukas's many Thoroughbred accomplishments include being voted the Eclipse Award as top trainer four times (1985-87 and 1994). He has trained 24 Eclipse Award winners and three Horses of the Year: Charismatic, 1999; Criminal Type, 1990; and Lady's Secret, 1986.

Lukas will be one of 12 inductees when the AQHA holds its 2007 convention in Houston next March 2-6. The AQHA Hall of Fame in Amarillo, Texas, was established in 1975 and is currently undergoing a major renovation. It is scheduled to reopen next year.