(CNN) His career as a racehorse has barely begun, yet according to his trainer people are already lining up for a chance to use Southern Phantom as a stud.

The two-year-old colt hasn't even won any of the three races he's run, but he's already got the popularity of a horse that's won a triple crown -- and it's all because of his unique look.

The social media star boasts a unique coat -- a bay-colored body with a face that looks like it's been dipped in a bucket of white paint. Southern Phantom also has mismatched blue and brown eyes, a balayage tail that feathers out to blonde and white knee-high socks.

"Most beautiful and unusual (horse) I have ever seen," fans write on the colt's Facebook page.

"I have never seen a thoroughbred with these markings," another writes. "Absolute highlight of my visit to Saratoga (Race Course) this year."

Sounterhn Phantom's face is entirely white. The horse also has one blue and one brown eye. Credit: Dona Federico

The horse becomes the talk of the racecourse whenever he makes an appearance.

"He gets his picture taken daily. I'm kind of getting a little upset with it because I'm used to the camera's being on me," Southern Phantom's colorful trainer, Eric Guillot tells CNN Sport.

Phantom of the Opera

It seems Southern Phantom was destined for fame, especially after gaining so much popularity the moment he was born.

At the time, Guillot got in touch with a friend at Bloodhorse Magazine, who then came up with the idea of holding a naming contest for the foal.

"I was the guy who had to look through them all!" Guillot says. "We were going to let it run for a couple of weeks but it was so popular. We had 2,800 entries in four days so I said 'hey, hey, put a halt to this thing so I can pick a name!'"

"I didn't want to have to look through 10,000 names," he adds.

Southern Phantom got his name after a competition was held in a weekly news magazine. Credit: Sarah Murphy

Guillot chose Southern Phantom given its a mash-up of his stable name, Southern Equine Stables, and a fitting tribute to the white mask from the musical, Phantom of the Opera.

"There were 2,799 haters because we didn't use their name," Guillot laughs.

'We've got to put suncream on his face'

Though with Southern Phantom's pure white markings, comes sensitive skin -- he even has to wear suncream.

"His skin's very sensitive with all the white and the pigment is a really pronounced pink," explains Guillot.

"When he's out in the paddock you've got to put suncream on his face. Even the grain mix makes his nose really pink, so you have to wash it off every day," the trainer says.

Grabbed a couple pictures of Southern Phantom after he schooled in the paddock earlier at Saratoga. He's magnificent! pic.twitter.com/nkdCK3Yx5P — EddieP (@EdPiluso) September 1, 2018

Guillot says during his entire career as a trainer he's never seen a thoroughbred as unique as Southern Phantom.

"I'd seen Jack Van Berg in the early 90s with Tri Chrome which the body had a lot of white, like a paint horse, but never the uniqueness of a total white head horse with two different colored eyes and that much white on its belly and tail."

Guillot's not quite sure where his horse's splashed white pattern came from.

Southern Phantom's sire is Bodemeister -- the Bob Baffert-trained horse who won the 2012 Arkansas Derby and placed second at the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes the same year. And his dam, Out For Revenge, was sired by 2005 Preakness Stakes champion, Bernardini. All three horses were bays, with Bodemeister having a white blaze on his face.

Bodemeister prior to the 137th Preakness Stakes in 2012.

Mutation?

"The short answer to why is his coat like that, there is likely a mutation in one or more of the genes involved in pigmentation," professor and director of the Veterinary Genetics Laboratory at UC Davis, Rebecca Bellone tells CNN.

"There are several hundred genes that have been described in mammals to be involved in pigmentation," she says, adding it's impossible to tell by simply looking at the horse.

Photos: A history of the thoroughbred A history of the thoroughbred – Every thoroughbred horse can be traced back to one of three stallions, and 95% of those go back to one -- the Godolphin Arabian, pictured. Named after his owner, Earl Francis Godolphin, the stallion lived from 1724-1753 and sired some of the greatest racehorses in history, with Seabiscuit and Man o' War just two of his direct descendants. Hide Caption 1 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The first great racehorse – Sired by the Darley Arabian --one third of the thoroughbred stallion trifecta, along with the Godolphin Arabian and the Byerly Turk -- Flying Childers is often credited as the first true "great racehorse."He was retired to stud after winning all six of his races in the early 18th century. His British owner, the Duke of Devonshire, once reportedly received an offer to buy the stallion for the price of its weight in gold. Hide Caption 2 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The greatest racehorse of all time – Grand foal of the Godolphin Arabian, Eclipse is perhaps the greatest thoroughbred ever to race. After 18 wins from 18 starts in only 17 months, Eclipse was retired to stud in 1771 due to lack of competition, as nobody would bet on the other horses. The Eclipse Stakes at England's Sandown Park are a testament to his legacy. Hide Caption 3 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred It's all in the name – Potoooooooo (often spelled "Pot-8-Os") is responsible for a key element of horseracing -- that of abstract and often ludicrous naming. Sired by the great Eclipse, he was originally to be "Potatoes" but after a stableboy misspelled his name on a feedbin the horse's breeder -- the 4th Earl of Abingdon -- found the mistake so humorous he decided to keep it that way. Hide Caption 4 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The Aleppo connection – In 1878 Wilfrid Scawen Blunt, pictured, and his wife Lady Anne Blunt established what would become Britain's foremost thoroughbred stud farm. Crabbet Arabian Stud was founded after the Blunts decided -- while on holiday in Syria -- to bring back some of the best Arabian horses for breeding in England. Now, 90% of all Arabian horses can be traced back to Crabbet. Hide Caption 5 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred Horses on film – Persimmon, depicted here with his owner King Edward VI, is the first horse to be captured on film. The 1895 filming of the Epsom Derby fast became a worldwide cultural phenomenon, with thousands of people flocking to exhibitions to witness racing on film for the first time. Persimmon accumulated what would be $3.5 million in on-track prize money by modern standards. Hide Caption 6 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The greatest horse since Eclipse – American horse Man o' War won 20 of 21 races he started, raking in more than $7.5 million in today's equivalent prize money. For six races as a two-year-old, his handicap of 130 pounds was one of the heaviest ever carried. Hide Caption 7 of 8 Photos: A history of the thoroughbred The next generation – Black Caviar, pictured, is the most successful sprinter in the world with a unbeaten record of 25 wins. Hide Caption 8 of 8

Bellone says it's not unusual for a horse to have one blue and one brown eye if they have "extensive face markings".

"Typical of other horses, on Southern Phantom the side of the face with the blue eye has more white than that with the brown eye," she notes.

While Bellone doesn't find Southern Phantom's markings rare, she says they may be considered rare in thoroughbreds.

"What is interesting to me as a geneticist is the fact that the horses in his pedigree do not display a lot of white face and leg markings," she says.

"I would love to know what the change or changes are in the DNA that caused his beautiful pattern."

According to the Weatherbys General Stud Book , bay is the most prevalent color in thoroughbred foals -- though coats can change as the horse matures.

"A brown foal may mature to gray if the sire and/or dam is gray" it notes.

'He's not a boogeyman'

While the words "freaky," "scary" and "creepy" have been thrown about at the racecourse when Southern Phantom walks by, Guillot is quick to dismiss them.

"He's not a boogeyman, he's not going to bite -- a lot of people find life kind of frightening!

"He's very friendly, he's very people orientated," he adds.

In true Guillot style, when Southern Phantom shot to fame he stuck a board outside the stall which advertized selfies with the colt for a set fee -- depending on your gender, and appearance.

"I was just teasing," he laughs. "That's probably the most money I'd ever make if I charged $5 for a selfie!"

"I was just teasing," Guillot laughs as talks about charging people for selfies with Southern Phantom. "That's probably the most money I'd ever make if I charged $5 for a selfie!"

Superstar or not?

As for Southern Phantom's racing career, Guillot is staying relaxed.

"I think he's going to be all right. He's getting better," he says. "I don't know if he's a superstar, but he's gonna be OK."

So far, the best Southern Phantom has placed is third during his second race at Saratoga Race Course. He finished fifth during both his debut and on September 3 after a slow break.

Though Guillot knows what it'll mean for business should he win.

"If he happens to win the right race, he's going to be a phenomenal stud because he'll get 100 mares just from the popularity of his market," he says.

Southern Phantom who has been garnering a lot of media because of his unusual coloring for a thoroughbred ran in the 6th race on the card but was off the board.

While Guillot can't put a price on what Southern Phantom could charge, he knows one thing for sure -- there's demand.

"I've got a line a mile long of people who want him afterward."