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2023 Kentucky Derby

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149th Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
Grade I stakes race
2023 Kentucky Derby
LocationChurchill Downs
Louisville, Kentucky, United States
DateMay 6, 2023 (2023-05-06)
Distance1+1⁄4 mi (10 furlongs; 2,012 m)
Winning horseMage
Winning time2:01.57
Final odds15–1
JockeyJavier Castellano
TrainerGustavo Delgado
OwnerOGMA Investments, Ramiro Restrepo, Sterling Racing and Commonwealth Thoroughbreds
ConditionsFast
SurfaceDirt
Attendance150,335
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2024 →

The 2023 Kentucky Derby (branded as the 149th Running of the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve for sponsorship reasons)[1] was the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby. It took place on May 6, 2023, the first Saturday in May, in Louisville, Kentucky. The race was open to 20 horses, who qualified for the race by earning points on the 2023 Road to the Kentucky Derby. The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race at a distance of 1+1⁄4 miles (2.0 km) and has been run at Churchill Downs racetrack since its inception in 1875. The purse for 2023 was US$3 million.[2] The race was won by Mage.

The race was broadcast by NBC, with coverage of undercard races beginning at 10:30 am EDT on USA Network and main network coverage of pre-race activities starting at 12:30 pm EDT. It was also livestreamed on NBCSports.com.[3] According to The Blood-Horse, NBC's broadcast "averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 14.8 million viewers—making it the most-watched sporting event and second most watched show (behind only the Academy Awards) since Super Bowl LVII in February."[4]

During the week of the 2023 Derby, seven horses died at Churchill Downs, including two who were euthanized prior to the signature race on Saturday.[5]

Qualification

[edit]
Main article: 2023 Road to the Kentucky Derby

The field is limited to twenty horses who qualify based on points earned in the 2023 Road to the Kentucky Derby, a series of designated races that was first introduced in 2013. This point system replaced the previous graded stakes race earnings system.[6] The Main Road consists mostly of races in North America and one in Dubai, the Japan Road consists of four races in Japan, and the European Road consists of seven races in Great Britain, Ireland and France.[7]

Entries

[edit]

The draw for the event was held at Churchill Downs at 2:00 p.m. on May 1, 2023.[8] Forte was installed as the 3-to-1 favorite and drew post number 15.

Three horses were withdrawn from the Derby two days before the race. On May 4, trainer Tim Yakteen withdrew Practical Move after the horse developed a fever, which allowed the Dale Romans-trained Cyclone Mischief to qualify from the also-eligible list.[9] Later that day, Wood Memorial winner Lord Miles was withdrawn by order of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, which announced that all horses trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. could not race until further notice after two of them collapsed and died following races run at Churchill on April 29 and May 2. The withdrawal of Lord Miles allowed Japanese horse Mandarin Hero to take part in the race.[10] The third and final also-eligible, the Ron Moquett-trained King Russell, qualified for the Derby on the evening of May 4 after another Japanese contender, Continuar, was withdrawn by trainer Yoshito Yahagi.[11] On the day before the Derby, John Shirreffs withdrew Skinner after that horse developed a temperature.[12] On May 6, just hours before the Derby was scheduled to start, Forte was withdrawn from the race. Mike Repole, the co-owner of Forte, cited the cause as a bruised right foot.[13]

Horse deaths

[edit]

Seven horses died at Churchill Downs during the week of the Kentucky Derby, including two horses that died in undercard races on the day of the Derby.[5] Wild on Ice, a Derby contender, was hurt while training on April 27 and was euthanized.[14][15] On April 29, Code of Kings died after flipping and breaking his neck.[5] Take Charge Briana was injured in a race on May 2 and was euthanized.[5] On May 4, trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. was suspended indefinitely by Churchill Downs after two of his horses, Parents Pride and Chasing Artie, died.[10] Parents Pride suddenly died on April 29 and Chasing Artie collapsed and died following a race on May 2.[10] As of May 6, investigators had not determined the cause of death for Joseph's horses.[16]

Chloe's Dream and Freezing Point were euthanized on May 6 after being injured in undercard races. Chloe's Dream injured his right front knee in the second race and went into an equine ambulance; he was euthanized after.[17][18] In the eighth race, Freezing Point was injured after being bumped in the backstretch and went into an equine ambulance. His injured left front ankle was reportedly put in a splint, but he was eventually euthanized.[5][16][18]

Result

[edit]

Mage won by a length with a time of 2:01.57. Initially, he broke slowly and was near the back of the pack. Verifying, Kingsbarns and Reincarnate set a fast pace with fractions of :22.35, :45.73 and 1:10.11. Mage was in sixth place by the mile marker. He charged to the outside of Two Phil's, overtook Two Phil's down the stretch and held off Two Phil's and Angel of Empire for the win.[16][18][19]

Mage had only one win before the Kentucky Derby. Mage became the fourth horse to win the Kentucky Derby after having only three previous starts, joining Justify, Big Brown and Regret. He also became the fourth horse to win the Kentucky Derby without racing as a two-year old, joining Justify and Apollo.[16][19] It is the first Kentucky Derby win for jockey Javier Castellano and trainer Gustavo Delgado.[18]

Mage is owned by OGMA Investments, Ramiro Restrepo, Sterling Racing and Commonwealth Thoroughbreds, a micro-shares company that sells shares to back the career of an athlete or horse. They banded together after Restrepo and Delgado bought Mage for $290,000, which was above their initial budget.[18][19]

Finish Program

Numbers

Horse Qualifying

Points

Trainer Jockey Morning
Line Odds 		Final Odds Margin
(Lengths) 		Winnings
1 8 Mage 50 Gustavo Delgado Javier Castellano 15-1 15.21 $1,860,000
2 3 Two Phil's 123 Larry Rivelli Jareth Loveberry 12-1 9.87 1 $600,000
3 14 Angel of Empire 154 Brad H. Cox Flavien Prat 8-1 4.06 1+1⁄2 $300,000
4 11 Disarm 46 Steven M. Asmussen Joel Rosario 30-1 27.12 4+1⁄2 $150,000
5 1 Hit Show 60 Brad H. Cox Manuel Franco 30-1 24.02 6+1⁄2 $90,000
6 17 Derma Sotogake (JPN) 100 Hidetaka Otonashi Christophe Lemaire 10-1 7.80 8
7 5 Tapit Trice 150 Todd A. Pletcher Luis Saez 5-1 4.53 9+1⁄4
8 16 Raise Cain 64 Ben Colbrook Gerardo Corrales 50-1 33.04 10
9 18 Rocket Can 60 William I. Mott Junior Alvarado 15-1 28.81 11
10 4 Confidence Game 57 J. Keith Desormeaux James Graham 20-1 21.03 14+1⁄2
11 13 Sun Thunder 54 Kenneth G. McPeek Brian Hernandez Jr. 50-1 33.06 16+3⁄4
12 22 Mandarin Hero (JPN) 40 Terunobu Fujita Kazushi Kimura 20-1 17.47 20+1⁄2
13 7 Reincarnate 45 Tim Yakteen John Velazquez 50-1 14.76 24+1⁄2
14 6 Kingsbarns 100 Todd A. Pletcher José Ortiz 12-1 11.72 25+1⁄4
15 23 King Russell 40 Ron Moquett Rafael Bejarano 50-1 32.27 25+1⁄2
16 2 Verifying 54 Brad H. Cox Tyler Gaffalione 15-1 14.30 54+3⁄4
17 12 Jace's Road 45 Brad H. Cox Florent Geroux 15-1 33.47 55+1⁄4
18 21 Cyclone Mischief 45 Dale L. Romans Irad Ortiz Jr.[a] 30-1 29.02 55+1⁄2
Scratched 9 Skinner[b] 45 John Shirreffs Juan Hernandez 20-1
10 Practical Move[c] 160 Tim Yakteen Ramon Vasquez 10-1
15 Forte[d] 190 Todd A. Pletcher Irad Ortiz Jr. 3-1
19 Lord Miles[e] 104 Saffie Joseph Jr. Paco Lopez 30-1
20 Continuar (JPN)[f] 30 Yoshito Yahagi Ryusei Sakai 50-1

Track condition: fast

Times: 1⁄4 mile – 22.35; 1⁄2 mile – 45.73; 3⁄4 mile – 1:10.11; mile – 1:36.06; final – 2:01.57.
Splits for each quarter-mile: (22.35) (23:38) (24:38) (25:95) (25:51)

Source: Equibase chart[24]

Payouts

[edit]

The table below provides the Kentucky Derby payout schedule for a $2 stake.[24]

Program number Horse name Win Place Show
8 Mage $32.42 $14.58 $9.08
3 Two Phil's — $10.44 $6.52
14 Angel of Empire — — $4.70
  • $2 exacta (8–3): $330.44
  • $0.50 trifecta (8–3–14): $491.18
  • $1 superfecta (8–3–14–11): $15,643.65
  • $1 Super High Five (8–3–14–11–1): $194,923.09

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Irad Ortiz Jr. was supposed to ride Forte, but after Forte was scratched, Ortiz was named as the rider of Cyclone Mischief[20]
  2. ^ Skinner was scratched after spiking a temperature[12]
  3. ^ Practical Move was scratched after having an elevated temperature on May 4[9][21]
  4. ^ Derby favorite Forte was scratched after regulatory veterinarian concerns related to a mending foot bruise in his right front leg[13][22][23]
  5. ^ Lord Miles was scratched by order of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission[10]
  6. ^ Continuar was scratched by trainer Yoshito Yahagi, who said that the horse did not reach peak fitness for the race[11]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Frank Angst (October 25, 2017). "Woodford Reserve is New Kentucky Derby Sponsor". BloodHorse.com. Archived from the original on April 15, 2018. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  2. ^ "Kentucky Derby Purse Raised to $3 Million". www.kentuckyderby.com. Archived from the original on April 2, 2023. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  3. ^ Guha, Rocky (March 15, 2022). "When is the Kentucky Derby 2023? Start Time, TV Channel, Odds". Kentucky Derby. Archived from the original on April 2, 2023. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  4. ^ "KY Derby Most Watched Sports Event Since Super Bowl". The Blood-Horse. May 8, 2023. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d e De la Fuente, Homero; Sottile, Zoe (May 6, 2023). "7 horses have died at Churchill Downs since the start of Kentucky Derby week". CNN. Archived from the original on May 8, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
  6. ^ "About the Road to the Kentucky Derby". Churchill Downs Incorporated. Archived from the original on April 11, 2016. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
  7. ^ "2022/23 Kentucky Derby Prep Races". kentuckyderby.com. Churchill Downs Inc. September 2022. Archived from the original on May 7, 2022. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  8. ^ King, Byron (May 1, 2023). "Favored Forte Avoids Unfavorable Draw in Kentucky Derby The son of Violence will start from post 15". bloodhorse.com. Archived from the original on May 2, 2023. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Practical Move scratched from Kentucky Derby due to fever". WLKY. Hearst Television. May 4, 2023. Archived from the original on May 5, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  10. ^ a b c d Vogt, Dustin; Stevens, Mark (May 4, 2023). "Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. suspended from Churchill Downs, Lord Miles scratched from Derby". WAVE. Gray Television. Archived from the original on May 5, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  11. ^ a b Kerstein, Kevin (May 4, 2023). "Continuar (JPN) to scratch from Kentucky Derby 149" (PDF) (Press release). Louisville, KY: Churchill Downs. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 5, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  12. ^ a b Grening, David (May 5, 2023). "Kentucky Derby: Skinner scratched due to temperature". Daily Racing Form. Archived from the original on May 5, 2023. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  13. ^ a b Culpepper, Chuck (May 6, 2023). "Forte, the morning-line favorite, scratched hours before Kentucky Derby". The Washington Post.
  14. ^ "Wild On Ice Euthanized Following Derby Work". www.bloodhorse.com. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved May 9, 2023.
  15. ^ Clay, John (April 27, 2023). "Kentucky Derby: Wild On Ice out after suffering leg injury | Lexington Herald Leader". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on April 27, 2023.
  16. ^ a b c d Harris, Beth (May 6, 2023). "Mage wins star-crossed Kentucky Derby amid 7th death". Associated Press. Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  17. ^ "2 horses euthanized after sustaining injuries Saturday at Churchill Downs". WDRB. May 6, 2023. Archived from the original on May 9, 2023. Retrieved May 9, 2023.
  18. ^ a b c d e Drummond, Cameron. "Lightly raced Mage wins the 2023 Kentucky Derby for his connections from Venezuela". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  19. ^ a b c King, Byron (May 6, 2023). "Mage Rallies to Thrilling Kentucky Derby Victory". Bloodhorse.com. Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  20. ^ Hall, Gregory A. (May 6, 2023). "Latest Changes for Kentucky Derby Day; The National Weather Service forecasts partly sunny skies with a high near 80". Bloodhorse.com. Archived from the original on May 6, 2023. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  21. ^ Perez, Joe (May 4, 2023). "Kentucky Derby With the scratch, Cyclone Mischief will make it into the Kentucky Derby (G1) field". Bloodhorse.com. Archived from the original on May 4, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  22. ^ "Forte, the 2023 Kentucky Derby favorite, scratched 10 hours before race at Churchill Downs". Courier Journal. May 6, 2023.
  23. ^ "Kentucky Derby favorite Forte scratched from race". ESPN. May 6, 2023. Archived from the original on May 6, 2023. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  24. ^ a b "2023 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve Grade 1 (race 12)". Equibase. May 6, 2023. Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
Preceded by Triple Crown Succeeded by
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