The Kentucky Derby is a beloved American tradition, dating back to 1875. Each year America’s top three-year-old Thoroughbreds gather at Churchill Downs to race over ten furlongs (one and one-quarter miles) in what is known as The Greatest Two Minutes In Sports.
The race has a rich and storied history, paralleling the story of America through the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries.
So, in case you are interested in the 2022 Kentucky Derby future wager, here are some fun facts that might help you decide on your picks.
1. Fast Favorites
Betting favorites have performed well at the Kentucky Derby in recent years, taking the roses each year from 2013 until 2018.
Although the favorite has failed to win since they often perform well; in 2020 heavily favored Tiz the Law finished second, and in 2021 the previously undefeated Essential Quality finished fourth and was eventually elevated to third upon the disqualification of Medina Spirit.
2. Live Longshots
Favorites may be heavily bet for good reason, but there is often value to be found at the Derby as well. The unheralded gelding Mine That Bird won the 2009 Kentucky Derby at odds of 50-1.
Ten years later, when Country House was elevated to Kentucky Derby victory upon the disqualification of Maximum Security, his backers were well pleased with his 65-1 odds. Both of those, however, pale in comparison to 1913 victor Donerail, who won at mind-blowing odds of 92-1.
3. All In The Family
It’s not uncommon for each Kentucky Derby participant in a given year to have a different sire (father), but all Thoroughbreds are bred from one of three foundation stallions: the Godolphin Arabian, the Byerley Turk, and most commonly, the Darley Arabian.
Nearly all recent Derby winners can trace their male-line pedigree to the Darley Arabian’s descendant Phalaris; of all Derby winners this century, only 2005 winner Giacomo claims different ancestry, being a descendant of the Darley Arabian but through the sire Himyar.
The last Derby winner to be a male-line descendant of the Godolphin Arabian was War Admiral in 1937, and the last to trace to the Byerley Turk through the male line was Alan-a-dale in 1902.
4. Bottoms Up
The Kentucky Derby is sponsored by Woodford Reserve, and so it follows that Kentucky bourbon is an indispensable part of the tradition.
The drink of choice is the Mint Julep, which can be found almost anywhere in Louisville on Derby Day.
If you are interested in your own Kentucky Derby party, check out this video on how to make the perfect Mint Julep.
5. Ladies’ Days
Only three fillies have won the Kentucky Derby. The first was the bright chestnut Regret, who took the roses in 1915 while remaining undefeated and racing entirely against the males of her generation. The second was Genuine Risk in 1980, who won the Derby after placing third in the Wood Memorial Stakes in her only previous start against the boys- and who, incidentally, bore a striking similarity in looks to her predecessor.
Finally, in 1988, a huge roan (gray hairs mixed with brown) filly named Winning Colors became both the most recent filly to win the Kentucky Derby as well as the first victory for Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas. The most recent distaffer to contest the Kentucky Derby was the bay filly Devil May Care in 2010, who finished tenth.
6. Girls’ Nights
Why the lack of female participation in the Kentucky Derby? Part of it may be due to the fact that three-year-old fillies have their own prestigious race: the Kentucky Oaks, also known as the Run for the Lilies, due to the fact that the winner is draped in a blanket of lilies.
The Kentucky Oaks, which is contested at one and one-eighth miles, is typically associated with parties and charitable events. It even has its own signature drink called (appropriately) the Lily.
7. Taken Down
The disqualification of Medina Spirit, who crossed the Derby finish line first in 2021, for illegal use of the drug betamethasone has certainly raised eyebrows; however, it is not the first time a Kentucky Derby winner has been disqualified.
In 2019, Maximum Security was disqualified for interfering with other horses during the race. The only other disqualified Derby winner was Dancer’s Image, who was taken down in 1968 for testing positive for phenylbutazone. It took four years and many court decisions to cement the result, meaning that we may be hearing about the results of Medina Spirit’s drug testing for some years yet.
8. Schedule Change
Since 1930, the Kentucky Derby has been held on the first Saturday in May, with two notable exceptions. In 2020, COVID-19 forced Churchill Downs to move the Kentucky Derby to its fall meet, meaning that it was held on the first Saturday in September that year. This was not entirely unprecedented; in 1945 World War II delayed the Kentucky Derby by several weeks. The race was finally run on June 9th of that year and was won by Hoop Jr.
9. Roads to the Roses
At the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth, it was not uncommon for a horse to make their seasonal debut in a major race such as the Kentucky Derby. From the 1920s onward, however, prep races- that is, smaller and less prestigious races that serve as part of a horse’s training and preparation- have played a major part in deciding which horses should take part in the Derby.
These prep races are run at tracks all over the United States as well as the rest of the world. Many of them, such as the Florida Derby and the Santa Anita Derby, carry million-dollar purses, elite Grade 1 status, and plenty of prestige in and of themselves.
These races became even more important in 2013 when a points system was initiated to determine eligibility for the Kentucky Derby. Major races a talented horse would enter before the Kentucky Derby, including several prestigious races for two-year-olds, award points to the top four finishers.
Only the top twenty points-earners can earn a spot in the Derby starting gate, so trainers with a Derby hopeful must carefully plan their horse’s racing schedule to rack up as many points as possible! Kentucky Oaks participants have their own points system connected to prep races for fillies; however, a filly who finishes in the top four in a Kentucky Derby prep against male horses simultaneously earns points toward both the Derby and the Oaks.
