History was made yesterday in the 130th Kentucky Derby when Smarty Jones, the “Philly Flash,” caught front-running Lion Heart in deep stretch, then went on to win by two lengths under rookie Derby rider Stewart Elliott before a rain-soaked crowd of 140,054 at Churchill Downs.
Trained by John Servis, who’d never run a colt in the Derby before, the son of Elusive Quality became the first undefeated colt to win the Run for the Roses since Seattle Slew in 1977, and he was just the second favorite to win in 25 years.
With a final time of 2:04 for the mile-and-a-quarter over a sloppy track, Smarty Jones paid $10.20. Lion Heart held for second, with Imperialism third and Limehouse fourth.
For his victory, “Smarty” took home $854,800 of the $1,154,800 purse. He also collected a $5 million bonus from Oaklawn Park, where he prepped for the Derby, pushing his earnings to $6,733,155, good for sixth on the list of all-time earners.
If Smarty Jones goes on to sweep the Triple Crown, he’ll add another $5 million to his treasure chest, making him the richest thoroughbred in history.
Many of the Derby runners will move on to the next two legs of the Triple Crown, the mile-and-three-sixteenths Preakness at Pimlico two weeks away on May 15 and the mile-and-a-half Belmont Stakes, the “Test of the Champion,” at Belmont Park on June 5.
If the Derby winner can complete the sweep – which hasn’t been accomplished since Affirmed outran Alydar in 1978, the longest drought between Triple Crown winners in history – he collects a $5 million bonus.
It was a topsy-turvy winter and spring leading up to the Run for the Roses, as 21 graded stakes at a mile or over for 3-year-olds were won by 21 different horses.
Smarty Jones was the first to make an appearance in a Derby prep, shipping up from Philadelphia Park to run in the Jan. 3 Count Fleet Stakes over Aqueduct’s winterized inner dirt track, his first try around two turns. He passed with flying colors, winning off by five lengths.
Two weeks later, in the Holy Bull at Gulfstream Park, Second of June and Silver Wagon ran 1-2, but both eventually suffered injuries that knocked them off the Triple Crown trail. Friends Lake was third.
In California, stretch-running Imperialism came to the fore. After shipping cross-country from Florida, he won the San Vicente going seven furlongs, then came back to upset Lion Heart in the San Rafael at a mile.
On Valentine’s Day at Gulfstream, New York-bred Read the Footnotes, winner of the Big A’s Nashua and Remsen as a 2-year-old, made a successful return in the Fountain of Youth, out-dueling Second of June to win by a neck while earning the top speed figure of any Derby prep.
In Gulfstream’s March 13 Florida Derby, however, Read the Footnotes “bounced” off that taxing effort, finishing fourth. The 37-1 longshot winner of that race was another New York-bred, Friends Lake.
The time for the $1 million Florida Derby was slow – 1:51.1 for the mile-and-an-eighth – which earned a low speed number and caused many handicappers to dismiss Friends Lake’s effort. But the Florida Derby proved to be a key race, as two of the horses that finished behind Friends Lake that day – The Cliff’s Edge (third) and Tapit (sixth) – bounced back to win a pair of Grade 1’s, the Blue Grass at Keeneland and the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, respectively.
In the March 14 San Felipe at Santa Anita, Preachinatthebar held off St Averil to win by a nose, but neither of those colts made the starting gate here yesterday. Other early Derby contenders who fell by the wayside include Eurosilver (winner of last year’s Breeders’ Futurity), Sinister G (who took the Lane’s End) and Louisiana Derby winner Wimbledon, who was entered in the Derby but scratched. Also, two highly regarded colts, Eddington and Rock Hard Ten, were excluded from the field because they lacked the needed earnings in graded stakes.
Down at Oaklawn Park, Smarty Jones asserted his superiority, taking the Southwest by three-quarters of a length, the Rebel by 3 and the $1 million Arkansas Derby by 1½.
The April 3 Santa Anita Derby produced another big upset. The Irish-bred Castledale, who ran seven times on turf in Ireland before coming to the U.S. late in the fall, was making just his second start on dirt after finishing sixth in the San Rafael. But he ran down Rock Hard Ten in deep stretch to score by a head at 30-1.