Controversial Derby one for the books
History made: DQ of Maximum Security delivers 65-to-1 shot Country House win
Country House, a 65-1 long shot, takes Kentucky Derby when apparent winner Maximum Security is disqualified.
LOUISVILLE, KY. — In a first for the Kentucky Derby, the horse that crossed the finish line first did not win.
Maximum Security went wire to wire to apparently win the 145th Kentucky Derby.
However, track stewards ruled that Maximum Security impeded other horses during the stretch run and was disqualified as the race’s winner.
Country House, a 65-to-1 long shot who ran second, was moved up to first place. He paid $132.40 to win, the second-longest winning price in Kentucky Derby history.
Maximum Security had appeared to win by 11⁄2 lengths in the mud after taking control out of the final turn.
The objection was filed and stewards took about 20 minutes reviewing the race from several angles before declaring Country House the winner. Jockey Flavien Prat then celebrated as the finish was announced to the surprised crowd of 157,729.
The decision marks the first Derby win for trainer Bill Mott.
“It feels pretty darn good,” Mott said in the Winner’s Circle. “It was an odd way to do it. We hate to back into any of these things. It’s bittersweet, but I’ve got to say our horse ran very well. Our jockey rode very well, and I’m thrilled to death for all our connections. They’re very deserving. We’ll just have to prove ourselves in the future.”
Code of Honor was second, with Tacitus third.
It was a crushing turn of events for trainer Jason Servis and jockey Luis Saez, who already had begun celebrating what they thought were their first Derby victories. Instead, Maximum Security was dropped to 17th of 19 horses.
The colt was the 9-2 second choice in the wagering.
Prat claimed that Maximum Security ducked out in the final turn and forced several horses to steady.
War of Will came perilously close to clipping heels with Maximum Security, which could have caused a chain-reaction accident.
Trainers and jockeys involved stared at the closest video screen waiting for a result.
“I’m kind of speechless right now,” Prat said after the decision was announced.
Improbable was fourth and Game Winner fifth, two of trainer Bob Baffert’s trio of entries.
Omaha Beach was the morning-line favorite for the Derby, but trainer Richard Mandella scratched him from the field Wednesday after a scope found the colt was suffering from an entrapped epiglottis that hampered his breathing.
With Omaha Beach out, a field that top trainers already referred to as wide open became that much more unpredictable. Baffert said there was almost no way to separate the top five contenders in the morning line, three of which came from his barn.
Now the questions will turn to Country House’s Triple Crown potential. The feat has temporarily lost some of its mystique after American Pharoah achieved it in 2015 and Justify followed in 2018. But the Derby winner will still be greeted as a conquering hero when he arrives at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore to prepare for the May 18 Preakness.
As was the case with the Derby, the second jewel of the Triple Crown will be run against a backdrop of anxiety for the sport, which was rocked by a spate of 23 horse deaths at Santa Anita Park earlier this year.