Longshot Rich Strike races to stunning Kentucky Derby triumph
WASHINGTON: Rich Strike, an 80-1 longshot who only got into the field the day before the race, stormed home on the inside to seize a stunning upset victory in the 148th Kentucky Derby on Saturday.
The colt, trained by Eric Reed and ridden by Sonny Leon, gained a place in the field when Ethereal Road was scratched on Friday morning, as owner Richard Dawson put it, ‘about 30 seconds before the deadline’ to enter. Breaking out of the 20th post, Rich Strike was well back in the field of 20 as they turned for home, but Leon patiently guided him through the throng on the Churchill Downs dirt track. Epicentre, sent off as the 4-1 favorite, was dueling with Zandon in the stretch when Rich Strike burst through on the rail for the greatest upset in terms of odds since 1913, when 91-1 longshot Donerail won the first event in US flat racing’s Triple Crown. Epicentre, trained by Steve Asmussen and ridden by Joel
Rosario, was second and Zandon, trained by Chad Brown and ridden by Flavien Prat, was third. For Asmussen, it was his 24th Kentucky Derby start without a victory.
“I fell down in the paddock when he hit the wire. I about passed out!” said Reed, who like Leon was in the US classic for the first time.
The chestnut colt’s only prior victory came at Churchill Downs in September. But Dawson said that he wouldn’t have entered the horse if he didn’t think he had a chance.
“Never, ever would Eric and I put a horse in a race we didn’t think we could win,” he said.
“We just knew that we had a shot because every time he went longer he got better. Today he went a mile and a quarter and he just kept going.” Indeed, the firedup winner tried to take a bite out of his escort horse as they made their way to the winner’s circle to celebrate the victory, worth US$1.86 million of the US$3 million purse.
“I knew I had a horse for the race,” said Leon, who said he tried to keep the ride ‘nice and easy.’
“I waited for my moment and I came through on the stretch. The last 100 yards, I said, ‘I think I’ve got this race.’”