Updated: 4/16/03
The Kentucky Derby has been run at two different distances:
The largest Derby crowd was 163,628, who attended the 100th running in 1974. The second largest was 156,106 in 2000.
The leading Kentucky Derby winning jockeys are:
The leading Kentucky Derby winning trainers are:
Calumet Farm is the leading owner with 8 wins, and the leading breeder with 9 wins. Eight of the nine Calumet-bred winners were bred at the same farm near Lexington, the exception being Strike The Gold.
Twelve Kentucky Derby winners have sired Kentucky Derby winners:
The oldest living Derby winner is Spectacular Bid, the 1979 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner. He still stands at stud at Milfer Farm in upstate New York. There is a book about him written by Timothy T. Capps.
The winningest post position is #2 with 29 winners. Twelve winners won from post #1, and ten winners each from posts #4 and #5. None have won from post #15.
The track and stakes record for 1 1/4 miles is 1:59.40 set in 1973 by Secretariat. When the race was at 1 1/2 miles, the stakes record was 2:34.50 set by Spokane in 1889. The slowest 1 1/4-mile Derby was run in 1908 by Stone Street in 2:15.20. For more info on the fastest running and fractions, check here.
Kentucky Derby winners by color:
There have been 32 odds-on favorites of which 17 won and 11 finished second. Shortest odds on a winning favorite were Citation (coupled with Coaltown) and Count Fleet, who went off at 2-5. Before pari-mutuel wagering was introduced, three winners went off at 1-3: Hindoo, Halma, and Agile. The longest shot to win the Derby was Donerail in 1913, at 91-1.
Only three fillies have won the Kentucky Derby out of 38 who entered. The winners were:
For even more stats and trivia about the horses in the Kentucky Derby, check here.
Triple Crown quick links:
Bill Shoemaker also leads all jockeys in Derby mounts, with 26. Arcaro had 21 rides.
*Bold Venture sired 2 winners

Spectacular Bid, winner of the 1979 Kentucky Derby

