As the record crowd cheered, American Pharaoh rallied from behind and took aim at his two remaining rivals. The bay colt and jockey Victor Espinoza took the lead with a furlong to go and finished wide of the finish line in the 2015 Kentucky Derby.
Three-time winner Espinoza recalled, “There’s nothing like winning the Kentucky Derby.” “To me it’s the most important thing in horse racing.”
America’s longest continuously held sporting event turns 150 this Saturday. By age, it’s got westminster Dog show lost for two years. The derby has survived two world wars, recessions and pandemics including COVID-19 in 2020, when it ran in virtual silence without the usual crowd of 150,000.
The first Saturday in May is Derby Day, with all the pageantry including fancy hats, fans dressed in their Sunday best, mint juleps served in souvenir glasses, the crowd singing “My Old Kentucky Home” and hand-sewn garlands of red roses . For the winner. The Derby was the second most watched sporting event of 2023, behind the Super Bowl.
Two-time Derby winning trainer Todd Pletcher said, “I’ve heard a lot of people say it’s on their bucket list to attend and it’s a horse race they watch every year.”
only one chance
One thing that makes the Derby unique is that horses only get one chance to race in it because only 3-year-olds are eligible. It is also the only race in America with a 20-horse field. Since 2013, horses have to accumulate points in qualifying races to earn their spots. Previously, the field was determined by money won in graded stakes races.
“Keeping him on track to get to the Derby, getting into the Derby and then, hopefully, it all goes well, and you get a nice, clean trip, it’s very tough,” trainer Brad Cox said. louisville native who will be aboard Catching Freedom, Encino and Just a Touch on Saturday.
Louisvillians are proud of their city’s 1875 tradition of preparing homemade versions of high-calorie dishes like Benedictine Dip (grated cucumbers, cream cheese, sour cream and mayo), Derby Pie (chocolate chips and nuts) and cocktails . If they’re not going on track.
diversity struggles
Thirteen of the 15 jockeys in the first Derby were black, including Oliver Lewis, who won aboard Aristides in 1875 in front of 10,000 cheering fans.
The Black Riders won 15 of the first 28 derbies, and then none from 1920–2000. As Jim Crow laws were introduced, segregation spread throughout the country, including in horse racing, where it was almost impossible for black riders to obtain a license.
The last Black jockey to race in 2021 was Kendrick Carmouche.
Black trainers also dominated the early years of the Derby, winning seven of the first 17 from 1875–1891. On Saturday, Larry Demeritt will be second since 1951 and 17th overall when he makes the long shot at West Saratoga.
Protesters demanding racial justice and an end to police brutality demonstrated outside Churchill Downs in 2020 and 2021 Breonna Taylor26-year-old Black EMT killed by police in drug raid at his Louisville home.
Women have also had a sporadic presence in the derby. Only six have participated in the race, the last being Rosie Napravnik in 2014. Seven women have trained derby runners, with Vicki Oliver last doing so in 2021.
“This is an incredibly difficult race to run in, let alone win,” Cox said.
horse safety
Cox was declared the 2021 winner nine months after the race, when Medina Spirit was disqualified for a failed drug test – only the second such DQ in the race’s history – and Mandalaun was demoted to first place. .
“We’re all trying to win this race to experience the thrill of victory,” Cox said, “and we have yet to do that.”
The Derby’s image took a major blow last year when 12 horses died at Churchill Downs in the weeks surrounding the race. An independent investigation revealed no fault, and no single cause was found. The track continued training, but moved the remainder of its spring racing meets to western Kentucky.
The coach who set the record for six wins is not at Louisville for the third consecutive year. Bob Baffert has been banned by Churchill Downs Inc. since Medina Spirit’s failed drug test affected its 2021 results.
Baffert fought his original two-year suspension in court, but lost a year later. Last summer, the track said it was extending the suspension through 2024. It cited “continued concerns about the threat to the safety and integrity of racing.”
glittering showcase
The track’s publicly traded parent company, Churchill Downs Inc., has spent $500 million on renovations and modernization over the past decade to satisfy shareholders. Its newest showpiece is a $200 million paddock, where fans, who don’t mind dropping up to $12,000, can dine before the race and watch the horses being saddled up.
In its 150th year, the Derby’s purse has increased to a record $5 million, with $3.1 million going to the winning owner.
Despite all the changes over the years with the infiltration of races, tracks and current events, the First Saturday of May has persisted.
“The one thing that continues is that you’ve got 20 of the best 3-year-olds from around the world,” said trainer Doug O’Neill, a two-time Derby winner.
“It feels like this is a mainstay that we can really rely on,” Pletcher said.
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AP Horse Racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing