In 1910, the automobile industry is taking the USA by storm thanks to the invention of
the assembly line. Charles Howard still works in a bicycle factory that's having trouble with the
newest pieces because they're losing quality now that most producers are concentrating on cars.
After his boss makes a joke about making his own bicycles, Charles leaves New York and moves to
San Francisco to open his own bicycle shop, but it doesn't go well because people barely care about
bicycles anymore. His first client turns out to be a driver whose car's boiler blew right in front
of the shop, and Charles accepts to help simply because he's desperate to bring some money into
the shop. As soon as he puts his hands on the engine, he realizes he can work with this too,
and his shop goes from selling bicycles to selling cars. His business begins growing pretty fast,
and soon he's the largest car dealer in the area, not to mention one of the richest men in
the country. He promotes car races and buys a huge house for his wife and kid, which includes quite
a few stables. Meanwhile itinerant horseman Tom Smith continues to travel the countryside, finding
work in any ranch that will take him and sleeping under the stars because he likes nature better.
He's starting to get worried about the cars taking over people's daily lives because roads are
starting to cater to them and now there are fences with spiky wire around the roads that could hurt
farm animals. Fortunately he's an amazing trainer, and any horse that gets too scared of the machines
or simply is too temperamental, Tom will tame into obedience. In Canada, young John is riding a horse
for the first time and discovers he absolutely loves it. His father can tell he has talent
and wants to buy him the animal, but his mother points out the kid should earn it. From then on,
John's father begins testing him on the books the boy reads. John is passionate about literature and
answers it all flawlessly, so soon he's riding his very own horse around the family estate. Fifteen
years later, the stock market crashes on Black Thursday, kicking off what is known as the Great
Depression and making thousands of people lose their jobs. John's family loses everything, so he
starts helping a horse trainer with a few chores to earn some extra bucks. Because he spent so many
years taking care of his own horses, John is a natural at working with them and gets a lot of
praise from his boss, thus John's family decides to leave him working for a stable owner in order
for him to have a better life. When his parents come to say goodbye to John, they gift him a bag
with all his favorite books. Six years later, John is a jockey trying to build up his career. The
stable that takes him in offers him a horrible deal to race for almost no money, but it's all
John can get for now. He loses his first race just by a nose, getting him the ire of his boss
that punishes him by making him clean the stalls. Eventually he gets tired of it and quits, only to
then take up amateur boxing to earn some extra bucks. This allows him to save up some money to
buy a ticket to move to Mexico in search of better luck there. Tom is in a similar situation, he also
lost his job and he's now traveling to Mexico in a truck transporting immigrants in the middle of the
night. In the meantime, Charles is trying to keep his business up without having to fire any more
people. One afternoon, after he leaves the house to go to a business meeting, his son steals one
of the family's many vehicles and has an accident that makes him lose his life. Charles rescues the
body himself and clings to it in tears before he begins to fall into a deep depression. His wife
can't stand the grief either, and after too many arguments with Charles, she asks for a divorce.
Some years later, the Mexican towns that share a border with the USA become the most popular
vacation spots after the States pass a law to ban alcohol. Charles crosses over one day to watch a
race with George Woolf, the greatest jockey in the world, and gets the attention of Marcela Zabala.
John's also joining this race because he's doing much better as a jockey here in Mexico, and he's
become friends with George too, to the point where they chat while they ride. Not far from there,
Tom is around as well, saving a horse from being put down just over a little wound. Tom believes
any horse can get better with enough patience and training. Later in the evening, John gets drunk
because he lost again, and he can't help thinking about the signs he lost during the race. He tries
to keep himself distracted by paying a woman for the night, but all the shouting from every boss in
his life keeps coming back to his mind; it's then revealed that boxing has left him blind in one
eye, which explains his small mistakes. Yet this doesn't stop him from continuing to box in Mexico,
which always leaves him in a horrible state. George tries to help his friend, but John refuses
to accept charity. Meanwhile Charles tries to keep himself entertained with all the activities Mexico
has to offer, but it's hard to forget about his grief. Marcela approaches him to get to know him
better, and the two of them start spending lots of time together, helping Charles to move on and
learn to love again. Eventually they get married, and since Marcela likes horses so much, Charles
decides to buy a stable of racehorses. While looking for a trainer, Charles sees Tom working
with the horse he saved, but the local businessmen advise him to avoid him because he's a crazy hobo
that lives in the woods. However Tom still got Charles' attention, so in the evening Charles
goes looking for him in his tent. Tom tells him all about the horse he saved, explaining the
poor guy won't be able to race again but he helped him anyway because he could. Charles is impressed
by Tom's skills and honesty and decides to hire him on the spot. Three months later in New York,
Tom is trying to guide Charles on how to buy the perfect racing horse, since lots of the animals
for sale were show ponies used to trick the rich. John happens to be working in that stable taking
basic care of the horses, but when Tom sees him from afar, he's impressed by his handling
of the animals. Later in the evening, while the tracks are covered in fog, Tom meets Seabiscuit,
a small colt with a limp but also attitude in his eyes. Seabiscuit was the son of very important
racehorses, but he was never wanted by his previous owners. He was too small, ate too much,
and was too lazy, nothing like his competitive parents. Trainers were sent to hit him into being
more active, but nothing worked, so it was decided he was incorrigible and used as a training partner
for better horses, making him lose on purpose to boost the other horse's confidence. Now as a
three-year-old, Seabiscuit has grown to be bitter and angry, and he lost every race. Most people saw
him as untamable, but Tom saw the potential and made Charles buy him anyway. The horse refuses
to let anyone near him and Tom's starting to wonder how they'll get a jockey when he sees
John getting in a fight with the locals. Noticing the similar temperament between horse and boy,
Tom invites John to meet Seabiscuit, and the two of them quickly connect thanks to John showing he
isn't scared and bringing an apple with him. Afterward, Tom meets Charles and Marcela,
who are happy to hire him, especially when they see him ride with Seabiscuit around the track
with ease. They aren't ready to race properly yet though because Seabiscuit has forgotten many of
the finest details that come with it, so Tom takes John and the horse to Charle's estate for proper
training. John feels awkward being with the rich again and has to be convinced to eat as much as he
wants, but at night he still sleeps in the stables with his books while Tom sleeps outside under the
trees. When Seabiscuit gets too anxious or moody, Tom brings him other animals to help soothe him
since he knows horses can get lonely. After many weeks of training, they take John and Seabiscuit
to a track for a practice race against another horse. At first Seabiscuit is slow and worries
everyone, but when he sees the other horse, his competitive side comes out and easily beats him
with a speed record. A few days later, John and Seabiscuit are ready for their first serious race,
and Marcela gets them red uniforms that make them look great. The commentator doesn't have faith in
Seabiscuit and bets he won't even finish all the rounds, and the other racers make fun of
him for his size. When the race begins, one of the jockeys pushes John, which should count as
a foul but it's such a small movement that it goes unnoticed. However John is furious and instead of
concentrating on the race, he concentrates on trying to get the other jockey off the rail,
and he ends up losing. When Tom and Charles scold him for his actions, John insists he had been
fouled since the beginning by yelling. Charles can tell John is angry at something else, but
John doesn't confess that he was probably fouled because of his blind eye. Later in the evening,
John takes his books to the bridge, but when he remembers his dad telling him he has a gift,
he decides not to end things after all. The next morning, John wonders if Charles would
lend him some money for the dentist, and Charles gives him more than necessary because he's not
done with John yet. Charles still thinks the kid has potential and isn't firing him just for one
race. Having someone believing this much in him is inspiring for John, and his next race is won
without trouble. The commentator takes back his words and admits Seabiscuit and John make a great
team. As they win more and more races, soon they become the state's favorite underdogs, and even
the cheapest seats are sold to watch Seabiscuit race. Lots of fans send gifts to the estate,
like dozens of boxes of beer, and Charles doesn't hesitate to show off for the press, he even begins
offering autographs made by Seabiscuit's foot covered with ink. Sometimes Charles even gives
away horseshoes as good luck tokens, which drives Tom crazy because then he doesn't have any when he
needs them. All this publicity and peacocking for the press isn't well received by Tom either
because Seabiscuit may be a celebrity locally but he still has a great way to go nationally.
If Charles wants Seabiscuit to become great, he needs to give Tom time to train him, otherwise
Tom would rather quit. To make him see reason, Tom shows Charles a video about War Admiral,
the East Coast champion horse owned by Samuel Riddle. Charles gets frustrated to see this other
horse get much more press and be called perfect, so he decides to appear on the radio and publicly
challenge War Admiral in a race to see who is better, the East or the West coast. However Samuel
dismisses him because racing is still new in California and therefore inferior, Samuel claims
he can't accept every challenge thrown his way by any wannabe racer that just wants some publicity.
This infuriates both Charles and John, but they aren't willing to give up yet. Charles talks to
the race organizers and offers one hundred grant as a prize for the next race to see if money is
enough to bring Samuel over, but he turns them down again. Two weeks later, Tom offers John as
many tips as he can think of for the big race. John follows the tips perfectly on the track,
but still comes second place just by a nose. Tom confronts him afterward, confused about how this
could've happened, and John finally admits he didn't see the other guy because of his blind
eye. Angry about being lied to, Tom tells Charles about this, unsure if they should keep John,
but Charles doesn't mind and reminds Tom of the horse he saved, quoting the lesson Tom taught him
that day: you don't throw a life away just because it's banged up a little bit. The news of John's
loss appears all over the news, and Samuel makes fun of them for being all talk. To counter this,
Charles accepts to give an interview where he says he'll never stop supporting John as his jockey and
that he'll enter Seabiscuit in big races until War Animal can go against him. If Samuel doesn't want
to accept his challenge it must mean he's afraid of them. Afterward, Charles begins taking Tom,
John, and Seabiscuit all over the country to promote their team by using charming speeches
that win over the public's hearts. Now they have the fans' support, everyone starts asking for a
match race between Seabiscuit and War Animal, so eventually Samuel gives in to social pressure.
However Samuel has some conditions: they'll do the race in the Pimlico Race Course, and
they'll use rope and bell instead of a starting gate. Charles accepts but this puts Seabiscuit
at a disadvantage because he doesn't know how to react to the bell, so the team spends the next
two weeks retraining the horse. After buying a bell, they teach Seabiscuit how to break fast,
and they do all the training a night for two reasons: one, to avoid the journalists that are
wandering around the area during the day. And two, for John to learn to trust the horse and feel his
movements instead of having to rely on his eyes. The trick works, and John notices how he doesn't
miss any obvious signs anymore. One afternoon while he's having a break, John discovers his
first boss is around trying to sell a horse. Because he feels he owes a lot to the man,
he accepts to breeze the animal to make the sale easier, but things end badly when the horse gets
scared by a tractor's engine making an exploding noise. The horse's startled reaction causes John
to have a nasty fall and get his leg stuck in the reins, so when the horse runs off, he drags John
through the ground for a few miles. As soon as Charles finds him, he takes John to the hospital,
where the doctor explains John's leg is shattered and an operation will be necessary. After lots of
anxious waiting, Charles receives good and bad news: the operation went well and John will be
able to walk again, but he'll always have a limp and riding is out of the question. When he goes
to check on John, Charles offers the option to cancel the race, but John refuses and asks him
to hire George in his place. Charles accepts and makes a big announcement for the press, but Samuel
doesn't care if they change jockeys. George starts to train at night with Tom, and during the day,
he gets tips on how to handle Seabiscuit from John at the hospital. He puts special emphasis on
letting Seabiscuit look at the other horse to get that competitive spirit going. When the day of the
race comes, all tickets are sold out, and forty million people are listening to it on the radio,
including John at the hospital. Tom gives a few last tips to George in private and also comments
on Seabiscuit's competitive spirit. Once the race begins, Seabiscuit reacts to the bell as taught
and starts at the lead, only for George to pretend to pull back on purpose to let him see the other
horse. The trick works and Seabiscuit becomes even faster, easily beating the famous War Admiral
in front of millions of people. Everyone starts celebrating the triumph of the underdog, and when
George is interviewed, he confesses he wishes John could've done this like he deserved. From then on,
George becomes Seabiscuit's jockey for all the races while a frustrated John has to follow the
results on the radio at home while sitting in a wheelchair. Unfortunately, tragedy soon strikes
again when Seabiscuit hurts his leg during a race. The vet explains he ruptured a whole ligament and
put on a splint on his leg, and while he can recover enough to walk, his leg will be lame
and he'll never race again. The vet also offers to put Seabiscuit down, but Charles refuses, still
believing in not throwing away a life. A few days later, Seabiscuit is brought to the family estate
so he can spend his time with John. Now the two of them do their daily exercises and walks together,
supporting each other through their recovery or just hanging out in the woods while John reads.
As weeks pass, both of them lose their casts, and John decides to take Seabiscuit for a calm,
short ride by wearing a self-made leg brace. The ride goes well and John starts eating a lot to
help his healing, soon he and Seabiscuit leave the short circles around the house and go for longer
rides in the woods. John even mows the grass to make a bigger circle around a tree and trains
Seabiscuit into running properly again. Now that he feels like a professional jockey once more,
John goes back to eating little. Marcela and Charles get suspicious and when they look into it,
they discover all the riding John and Seabiscuit have been doing in secret. Tom convinces Charles
to take Seabiscuit back to the tracks, and when George rides him as a test, he swears he didn't
notice the difference from the running before the injury. They still aren't sure if they're ready to
come back so when the radio commentator sees them, Charles pretends it's a different horse, but the
commentator doesn't believe him and announces the possible return of Seabiscuit anyway. A
few days later, John finds out about George riding Seabiscuit again and is hurt because he got better
too yet he's being ignored. After an argument, Charles feels guilty and accepts to see a doctor,
who is impressed by John's brace but is still honest with them: John can indeed ride again,
but if something happens, this time the injury won't heal and John won't be able to walk at
all. John still thinks it's worth the risk, but Charles turns him down. When Charles shares the
news with George later, George thinks he's in the wrong and comments it's worse to break
John's heart than his leg. Afterward, Marcela shows understanding over Charles's fear of John
dying in an accident like he lost his son, but she also thinks John should be allowed to ride, and
Charles finally gives in. Soon the announcement of a double return is all over the news and the
public gets excited to see John and Seabiscuit ride together again. On the day of the race,
John wears his self-made brace with pride, Marcela gifts him a saint medal for good luck,
and Tom reminds him of all of his training tips. When John and Seabiscuit enter the starting gate,
they're surprised to see George on another hose. He got a job at the last minute, but
he already knows he won't be able to win. The race starts with Seabiscuit at the end, but he hasn't
changed in personality and seeing the other horses kicks off his competitive spirit as usual. John
guides him to victory without trouble, bringing back hope for all the underdogs in the nation.