Blast From The Past: Kentucky Derby

Animal Kingdom, California Chrome and American Pharoah are probably the three best-known winners of the Kentucky Derby in recent years. The profiles of the first two were raised considerably by their subsequent wins in the Dubai World Cup (the latter at the second attempt this March), while American Pharoah has earned lasting fame as the most recent winner of America’s Triple Crown, uniquely adding a Breeders’ Cup Classic to register a ‘Grand Slam’.

But judged purely on the two minutes or so it takes to win the ‘Run For The Roses’, the best performance at Churchill Downs of any Kentucky Derby winner since Timeform began rating the race on an annual basis in 1991 was put up by Big Brown in 2008.

Big Brown was an unusually inexperienced contender for the Kentucky Derby with just three races under his belt beforehand, though he’d won all of them and was sent off favourite after a five-length win in the Florida Derby on his most recent start. Of his nineteen rivals, Santa Anita Derby winner Colonel John was reckoned to be his biggest danger, though perhaps the most interesting of his opponents was Eight Belles, a rare filly in a Kentucky Derby line-up who had won her last four starts and was bidding to become the first of her sex to win the race since Winning Colors in 1988.   

Drawn in the outermost stall in the field of twenty, Big Brown managed to secure a prominent position early on, though was obliged to race wide throughout and was still three wide when moving up to challenge on the home turn. But Big Brown settled the issue in a matter of strides early in the straight and was still keeping on well at the line to finish nearly nearly five lengths clear of Eight Belles who herself stayed on strongly to pull three and a half lengths ahead of Denis of Cork in third.

However, as well as a top-class display from the winner, this renewal of the Kentucky Derby was marked by tragedy as well, and coverage of Big Brown’s dominant performance was largely overshadowed by the fate of the runner-up who sadly couldn’t be saved after breaking down shortly after the line.

Big Brown impressed many as having the potential to become the first Triple Crown winner for thirty years, but after cruising home a fortnight later in the second leg of the series, the Preakness Stakes, he was pulled up when sent off the 3/10 favourite in the Belmont Stakes.

That proved the only defeat of Big Brown’s career – he won his two remaining starts – but America had to wait another seven years before American Pharoah finally emulated Affirmed, winner of the Triple Crown in 1978.

This year's Kentucky Derby favourite Nyquist, like Big Brown, goes to Churchill Downs with an unbeaten record intact after prepping in the Florida Derby.

Check out the Kentucky Derby 2016 Player's Package from TimeformUS