With favorites Epicenter and Zandon dueling ahead, Rich Strike charged for a stunning 80-1 disappointment in the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.
Jockey Sonny Leon steered Rich Strike from far into the field with 20 horses to beat his favorite Epicenter 4-1 by three-quarters of the length. Zandon was three-quarters of the length back in third place in the Churchill Downs in front of a crowd that included former President Donald Trump.
Rich Strike (21), with Sony Leon on board, defeats Epicenter (3), with Joel Rosario on board, to the finish line to win the 148th Kentucky Derby Horse Race in Churchill Downs, Saturday, May 7, 2022 in Louisville, Kay Mark Humphrey / AP
“I almost fell into the paddock when he hit the wire,” said winning coach Eric Reed. “I almost fainted.”
Rich Strike caused the second biggest upheaval in the 148-year history of the race, paying $ 163.60 to win. Only Donerail in 1913 had a higher payout of $ 184.90.
Rich Strike ran 1 1/4 miles in 2: 02.61.
After biting off his much more expensive race, Rich Strike playfully scratched the pony, leading him to the winner’s circle.
Rich Strike wasn’t even on the Derby field until Friday, when Hall of Fame coach D. Wayne Lucas scratched Ethereal Road, making room for the chestnut stallion coached by Eric Reed.
“We found out about 30 seconds before the deadline on Friday,” Dawson said. “It got us in the race and we really always felt that if we just came in, we had a chance.”
Both Leon from Venezuela and Reed were in their first derby. Leon regularly rides small tracks, including Ohio. Reed suffered a tragedy five years ago when he lost nearly two dozen horses in a barn fire at his Lexington training center.
A training rider runs his favorite Zandon in the morning line of the Kentucky Derby during a morning training session at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, May 5, 2022. Jamie Rhodes-USA Today Sports
Leon’s train journey was reminiscent of jockey Calvin Borrell’s stealth move aboard Mine That Bird in 2009. Mine That Bird caused the Derby’s third biggest disappointment at the time, paying $ 103.20 to win.
“When I was in the last 70 yards, I said, ‘I think I won this race,'” Leon said.
Rich Strike was bought by Dawson, which competes as RED TR-Racing LLC, for $ 30,000 last fall when the stallion was included in a low-level competition by former owner Calumet Farm.
Calumet farm owner Brad Kelly can challenge that decision now. Calumet Farm won a record eight derbies in Kentucky, but none since 1968, when the Forward Pass was placed in first place by disqualification.
Rich Strike won $ 1.86 million for his second career victory alone. The stallion lost to Zandon at Blue Grass Stakes last month and was defeated by Epicenter in the Louisiana derby in March.
Simplification finished fourth and Mo Donegal fifth.
This year’s race went on without Hall of Fame coach Bob Baffert, who was removed by Churchill Downs for two years after the failed Medina Spirit drug test and possible disqualification as the winner of last year’s derby.
Like other major sporting events such as the Super Bowl, Final Four and Major League Baseball matches, there are indications that the atmosphere for the first triple Crown jewel at horse racing was felt before the pandemic, although masks were optional.
The competition in 2020 was postponed until the weekend of Labor Day, after which it was held without spectators. It returned to its familiar spring slot eight months later in 2021, but with limited capacity.
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