Current:Home > InvestMystik Dan wins 150th Kentucky Derby in stunning photo finish -WealthX
Mystik Dan wins 150th Kentucky Derby in stunning photo finish
View
Date:2025-04-17 19:27:49
In an extraordinary photo finish, Mystik Dan emerged victorious at the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby Saturday evening at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Mystik Dan entered the 20-horse race with 18-1 odds.
Sent off at 18-1 odds, Mystik Dan and jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. rode the rail down the stretch with a short lead. Sierra Leone, the second choice at 9-2 odds, and Forever Young from Japan gave chase and pressured the leader to the wire in front of 156,710 at Churchill Downs.
It was just the 10th Kentucky Derby decided by a nose — the closest margin in horse racing — and the first since Grindstone wore the garland of red roses in 1996.
The crowd waited several minutes before the result was reviewed by the stewards and declared official.
"The longest few minutes of my life," Hernandez said, after he and the bay colt walked in circles while the stunning result was settled. "To see your number flash up to win the Derby, I don't think it will sink in for a while."
Fierceness, the 3-1 favorite, finished 15th in the field of 20 3-year-olds.
Mystik Dan will earn $3.1 million from a total purse of $5 million, the largest purse in the race's history. The purse is split among the top five finishers in the Derby, with $1 million for the runner-up, $500,000 for third place, $250,000 for fourth place and $150,000 for fifth place.
Mystik Dan ran 1 1/4 miles in 2:03.34 and paid $39.22, $16.32 and $10.
Hernandez and trainer Kenny McPeek had teamed for a wire-to-wire win in the Kentucky Oaks for fillies on Friday with Thorpedo Anna. McPeek is the first trainer to sweep both races since Ben Jones in 1952 and the fourth overall.
McPeek's only other victory in a Triple Crown race was also a shocker: 70-1 Sarava won the 2002 Belmont Stakes — the biggest upset in that race's history. The colt spoiled the Triple Crown bid of War Emblem.
Sierra Leone returned $6.54 and $4.64. Forever Young was another nose back in third and paid $5.58 to show.
Sierra Leone lugged in and bumped Forever Young three times in the stretch, but jockey Ryusei Sakai didn't claim foul.
— Alex Sundby contributed reporting.
- In:
- Kentucky Derby
veryGood! (67)
Related
- A White House order claims to end 'censorship.' What does that mean?
- Baby in Kansas City, Missouri, dies after her mother mistakenly put her in an oven
- MLB offseason awards: Best signings, biggest surprises | Nightengale's Notebook
- A tiny robot on the space station will simulate remote-controlled surgery up there
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- Taylor Swift's fans track down her suite, waiting for glimpse of her before Super Bowl
- Weird & Clever Products on Amazon That Will Make Your Home so Much Cooler
- Horoscopes Today, February 10, 2024
- This was the average Social Security benefit in 2004, and here's what it is now
- Southwest winter storm moves into New Mexico; up to foot of snow possible in northeast mountains
Ranking
- The Louvre will be renovated and the 'Mona Lisa' will have her own room
- Who is favored to win the 2024 Super Bowl, and which team is the underdog?
- Taylor Swift seemingly on way to Super Bowl to root for Travis Kelce after Tokyo shows
- Compound for sale in Naples, Florida is reportedly America's most expensive listing: See photos
- Don't let hackers fool you with a 'scam
- President Joe Biden to travel to East Palestine next week, a year after derailment
- Meet Speckles, one of the world's only known dolphins with extremely rare skin patches
- Beyoncé Announces New Album Act II During Super Bowl
Recommendation
Nearly 400 USAID contract employees laid off in wake of Trump's 'stop work' order
Meet Speckles, one of the world's only known dolphins with extremely rare skin patches
How Andrew McCarthy got Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez and the 'Brat Pack' together for a movie
Super Bowl: Do performers get paid? What to know about halftime performances, show cost
Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
Christopher Nolan, Celine Song, AP’s Mstyslav Chernov win at Directors Guild Awards
‘A Dream Deferred:’ 30 Years of U.S. Environmental Justice in Port Arthur, Texas
Social welfare organization or political party? Why No Labels may need a label