2008 Kentucky Derby

134th Kentucky Derby
Presented by Yum! Brands
Kentucky Derby
Location	Churchill Downs
Date	May 3, 2008
Winning horse	Big Brown
Winning time	2:01.82
Starting price	5-2
Jockey	Kent Desormeaux
Trainer	Richard E. Dutrow Jr.
Owner	IEAH Stables / Paul Pompa Jr.
Conditions	Fast
Surface	Dirt
Attendance	157,770
	← 2007 2009 →

The 2008 Kentucky Derby was the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 3, 2008, with 157,770 in attendance, the second largest in Derby history.^[1] Post time was 6:15 p.m. EDT and was televised in the United States on the NBC television network.

Big Brown won the race by nearly 5 lengths.^[2] Eight Belles, the second-place finisher and the first filly to run the Derby in nine years, was euthanized following the end of the race after fracturing both front ankles while galloping out. It is believed to be the first fatality in Kentucky Derby history.^[1]

Payout

The 134th Kentucky Derby Payout Schedule

Program Number	Horse Name	Win	Place	Show
20	Big Brown	US$6.80	$5.00	$4.80
5	Eight Belles	-	$10.60	$6.40
16	Denis of Cork	-	-	$11.60

$2 Exacta (20-5) Paid $141.60
$2 Trifecta (20-5-16) Paid $3,445.60
$2 Superfecta (20-5-16-2) Paid $58,737.80^[3]

Field

Big Brown was made the 2-1 favorite off the strength of his win in the Florida Derby.^[4] Other leading contenders included Colonel John (Santa Anita Derby),^[5] Pyro (Louisiana Derby),^[6] and the filly Eight Belles (Fantasy Stakes).

Finished	Time/ Behind	Post	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Odds
1	-2:01.82	20	Big Brown	Kent Desormeaux	Richard E. Dutrow Jr.	IEAH Stables & Paul Pompa Jr.	2-1
2	04 3⁄4	5	Eight Belles	Gabriel Saez	Larry Jones	Fox Hill Farms, Inc.	13-1
3	08 1⁄4	16	Denis of Cork	Calvin Borel	David Carroll	Mr. & Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.	27-1
4	11	2	Tale of Ekati	Eibar Coa	Barclay Tagg	Charles E. Fipke	37-1
5	11 3⁄4	18	Recapturetheglory	E. T. Baird	Louie J. Roussel III	Louie J. Roussel III & Ronald Lamarque	49-1
6	14 1⁄4	10	Colonel John	Corey Nakatani	Eoin G. Harty	WinStar Farm LLC	9-2
7	15	3	Anak Nakal	Rafael Bejarano	Nick Zito	Four Roses Thoroughbreds LLC	53-1
8	15	9	Pyro	Shaun Bridgmohan	Steve Asmussen	Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC	5-1
9	15 3⁄4	17	Cowboy Cal	John Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	Stonerside Stable	39-1
10	19 1⁄2	6	Z Fortune	Robby Albarado	Steve Asmussen	Zayat Stables, LLC	19-1
11	21	12	Smooth Air	Manoel Cruz	Bennie Stutts Jr.	Mount Joy Stables, Inc.	42-1
12	22 3⁄4	8	Visionaire	Jose Lezcano	Michael Matz	Team Valor & Vision Racing LLC	25-1
13	24 1⁄4	4	Court Vision	Garrett Gomez	William I. Mott	IEAH Stables & WinStar Farm LLC	17-1
14	24 1⁄2	11	Z Humor	René Douglas	William I. Mott	Zayat Stables, LLC	63-1
15	31 3⁄4	1	Cool Coal Man	Julien Leparoux	Nick Zito	Robert V. LaPenta	44-1
16	32	13	Bob Black Jack	Richard Migliore	James Kasparoff	Jeff Harmon & Tim Kasparoff	29-1
17	36 3⁄4	19	Gayego	Mike E. Smith	Paulo Lobo	Cubanacan Stables	18-1
18	48 3⁄4	7	Big Truck	Javier Castellano	Barclay Tagg	Eric Fein	28-1
19	50 3⁄4	15	Adriano	Edgar Prado	Graham Motion	Courtlandt Farms	28-1
20	59 1⁄4	14	Monba	Ramon Domínguez	Todd Pletcher	Starlight, Lucarelli & Saylor	31-1

Subsequent Grade I wins

Several horses recorded Grade I wins after the Derby.

Big Brown^[4] – Preakness Stakes, Haskell Invitational
Bob Black Jack – Malibu Stakes
Colonel John – Travers Stakes
Court Vision – Hollywood Derby, 2009 Turf Mile Stakes, 2010 Breeders' Cup Mile, Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap, Woodbine Mile
Gayego – 2009 Ancient Title Stakes
Pyro^[6] – 2009 Forego Stakes
Tale of Ekati – Cigar Mile
Visionaire – King's Bishop Stakes

Subsequent breeding careers

Leading progeny of participants in the 2008 Kentucky Derby

Big Brown (1st)

Dortmund – Los Alamitos Futurity, Santa Anita Derby. 3rd in 2015 Kentucky Derby

Colonel John (6th)

La Coronel – Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Stakes

Court Vision (13th)

Storm the Court – 2019 American champion 3yo, Breeders' Cup Juvenile
Mr. Havercamp – 2018 Canadian champion older horse
King and His Court – 2016 Canadian champion 2yo

Tale of Ekati (4th)

Girvin – Haskell Invitational

Sources: American Classic Pedigrees, Equibase, Blood-Horse Stallion Register

References

^ ^a ^b Runner-up Eight Belles breaks front ankles, euthanized on track. Associated Press. May 3, 2008.
^ "Updated Odds for Kentucky Derby (as of 01:00 UTC)". May 3, 2008. Archived from the original on 6 May 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-03.
^ 2008 Kentucky Derby Tables Archived 2011-07-23 at the Wayback Machine
^ ^a ^b "Big Brown profile". Equibase. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
^ "Colonel John profile". Equibase. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Pyro profile". Equibase. Retrieved 26 April 2020.

External links

"134th Kentucky Derby – Official Site". Archived from the original on 2008-02-08.

[espnb-1] Runner-up Eight Belles breaks front ankles, euthanized on track. Associated Press. May 3, 2008.

[2] "Updated Odds for Kentucky Derby (as of 01:00 UTC)". May 3, 2008. Archived from the original on 6 May 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-03.

[3] 2008 Kentucky Derby Tables Archived 2011-07-23 at the Wayback Machine

[BB-profile-4] "Big Brown profile". Equibase. Retrieved 26 April 2020.

[5] "Colonel John profile". Equibase. Retrieved 26 April 2020.

[Pyro-6] "Pyro profile". Equibase. Retrieved 26 April 2020.

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