Commotion (1938 – 1960) was a BritishThoroughbredracehorse andbroodmare who raced duringWorld War II and was best known for winning theclassicOaks Stakes in 1941. After racing over sprint distances, she was stepped up in distance the substitute "New Oaks" over one and a half miles atNewmarket Racecourse. On her next appearance she won theFalmouth Stakes and was then retired from racing. She later became a very successful broodmare.

Commotion was a bay filly bred in England byJohn Arthur Dewar who had inherited his Thoroughbred racehorses from his uncle theScottishwhisky distillerThomas Dewar, 1st Baron Dewar. She was from the first crop of foals sired by the French stallion Mieuxce, who won thePrix du Jockey Club and theGrand Prix de Paris before his racing career was ended by injury.^[1] Commotion's dam Riot was a half-sister to both Sansonnet (who producedTudor Minstrel) andFair Trial as well as being a high-class racehorse in her own right, winning theJuly Stakes in 1931.^[2] Commotion was sent into training withFred Darling^[3] atBeckhampton,Wiltshire.

Commotion's racing career took place duringWorld War II during which horse racing in Britain was subject to many restrictions. Several major racecourses, includingEpsom andDoncaster, were closed for the duration of the conflict, either for safety reasons, or because they were being used by the military. Many important races were rescheduled to new dates and venues, often at short notice, and all five of theClassics were usually run at Newmarket.^[4] Wartime austerity also meant that prize money was reduced: Commotion's Oaks was worth £1,939 compared to the £8,043 earned byGalatea in 1939.^[5]

WithEpsom Racecourse unavailable in 1941, a substitute "New Oaks" was run over one and a half miles on the July course atNewmarket Racecourse on 19 June. Commotion was well-backed for the race despite never previously having raced beyond six furlongs.^[6] Ridden byHarry Wragg, she started at odds of8/1^[7] with the1000 Guineas winnerDancing Time starting odds-on favourite. Wragg, who was a specialist at waiting tactics, restrained the filly in the early stages before producing her with a strong late run.^[8] She "threaded her way through the field"^[9] to take the lead in the final furlong and won by twolengths from Turkana, with Dancing Time three-quarters of a length away in third. Following the Derby victory ofOwen Tudor, owned by a member of theBuchanan family, Commotion's success completed what was dubbed a "whisky double".^[10]

At Newmarket in July Commotion started 6/5 favourite for theFalmouth Stakes which was run as part of a substituteRoyal Ascot meeting. She won narrowly from 1000 Guineas runner-up Beausite with Turkana third.^[6][4]

At the end of 1941, Commotion was rated the best three-year-old filly in Britain, three pounds ahead ofDancing Time.^[11]

In their bookA Century of Champions, based on a modified version of theTimeform system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Commotion an "average" winner of the Oaks.^[5]

Commotion produced eight winners between 1943 and 1958 including three top-class performers before her death in 1960:^[12]

• Combat, a brown colt, foaled in 1944, sired byBig Game. Undefeated winner of nine races including theSussex Stakes.
• Faux Tirage, bay colt, 1946, by Big Game. WonNewmarket Stakes,St James's Palace Stakes^[7]
• Aristophanes, chestnut colt, 1948, byHyperion. Champion sire in Argentina,^[13] sire ofForli

• 1938 racehorse births
• 1960 racehorse deaths
• Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom
• Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom
• Thoroughbred family 9-c
• Epsom Oaks winners

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