Two more horses died in the hours before 15-1 shot Mage won the Kentucky Derby by a length, bringing the total to seven fatalities and casting a shadow over the 149th edition of the world’s most famous race.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — After seven deaths raised questions about the future of horse racing, Mage achieved a surprising Kentucky Derby victory on Saturday, capping a nerve-rattling day that included two more deaths ahead of the 149th edition of this world’s most famous race.
Mage, a 15-1 shot, had only one win in his career, giving little indication that he could triumph against 17 competitors in a race that is not kind to the inexperienced.
Still, he made a gutsy stretch run, overtaking Known Agenda to his inside and winning by a length. Mage, who didn’t race as a 2-year-old, ran 1 1/4 miles in 2:01.57.
Mage joined Justify (2018), Big Brown (2008), and Regret (1915) as Derby winners with just three previous starts.
The colt was in the skilled hands of Javier Castellano, a Hall of Fame jockey who hasn’t been as sought after lately. The 45-year-old Castellano snapped an 0-for-15 veer in the Derby.
“I never give up,” Castellano said. “I always put an effort to do the right thing. It took me a long time to get there. I finally got it.”
Castellano and trainer Gustavo Delgado are both from Venezuela. Mage joined Canonero II as Derby winners with Venezuelan connections. Canonero II won the Derby and Preakness in 1971.
Entering the backstretch, Mage was behind only three horses. Castellano and Mage started picking off the competition and on the far turn launched their run.
“Turning for home, he had a lot of heart,” Castellano said. “He’s a little horse with a big heart.”
Known Agenda stormed to the lead at the top of the stretch. Mage swung to the outside and took aim at the leader. Mage passed him at the eighth-pole and went on to victory.
“Everything went according to plan,” Delgado Jr. said. “This is the dream I have, a year-and-a-half ago, I wrote a note: ‘We’re going to win the Derby next year.'”
Mage paid $32.40, $14.52, and $9.08. The colt earned $1,860,000 for the biggest win of his brief career.
Known Agenda returned $10.44 and $6.52.
“Man, he tried really hard and ran his heart out,” said Lewis Rivelli, who trains Known Agenda.
Mandaloun, the 4-1 favorite, was another half-length back in third before a crowd of 150,335 on a warm and partly cloudy day at Churchill Downs. He paid $4.70 to show.
Earlier in the day, Chloe’s Dream, a 3-year-old gelding, and Frozen Point, a 3-year-old colt, were euthanized after being injured in their races, becoming the sixth and seventh horses to have died on the track this year.
“It’s a very difficult subject to touch on,” said Ramiro Restrepo, part of Mage’s ownership and a bloodstock agent. “I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of investigations done as to the cause of that, and hopefully that gives some more answers.”
The string of horse deaths was on the minds of some Derby-goers.
“It’s concerning, and I hope they’re quickly doing the best they can to correct whatever’s happening,” said Michael Freeze, who with his friend dressed up as jockeys. “They need to do whatever is best for the horses, and the sport in general.”
Chloe’s Dream injured his right front knee, trainer Jeff Hiles told The Associated Press.
“He just got a bad step out there,” Hiles said. “They can do the same thing running in a field as they can on the track. So it’s very unfortunate. That’s what we deal with.”
Frozen Point suffered a left ankle injury in the Pat Day Mile, trainer Joe Lejzerowicz told the AP.
“He got bumped on the backstretch,” Lejzerowicz said. “He never took a bad step or bobble. He had a big heart.”
New antidoping and medication rules enforced by a central governing body of the sport are scheduled to take effect May 22.
“All I can say is we do our best to take care of the horses. We treat them better than we treat our kids. And we have full confidence in the soundness of our horse,” Restrepo said. “We’ve been training here for two weeks, and he really has been thriving at this racetrack.”
The deaths included Derby contender Hot Rod Charlie. Two of the horses were trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. He was indefinitely suspended by the track, though investigators have yet to determine a cause for the deaths of his horses.
A relieved Tim Yakteen, who trained Reincarnate to a 13th-place finish, said, “The most important thing is the horse came out of it OK.”
Renowned trainer Bob Baffert, a two-time Triple Crown winner, is nearing the end of a two-year ban issued by Churchill Downs Inc. One of his horses, Medina Spirit, crossed the finish line first in the 2021 Derby and failed a post-race drug test. The horse was disqualified and Baffert was penalized.
In 2019, over 30 horse deaths occurred at California’s Santa Anita racetrack, rattling the industry and prompting safety reforms. Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Richard Dutrow had his license revoked in 2011 for 10 years by New York officials. Authorities found syringes loaded with unauthorized medication in a desk in his barn. Dutrow served his punishment and re-opened his stable earlier this year.
Four horses were scratched — King Fury, King’s Ovation, Nova Rags, and Soup and Sandwich — this year. King Fury and Soup and Sandwich had fevers, while Nova Rags wasn’t in peak condition, according to his Japanese trainer. King’s Ovation was Joseph’s Derby horse.
Disarm was fourth, followed by Hot Rod Charlie, Japan-based Derma Sotogake, Tapit Trice, and Keepmeinmind, Rocket Dog, Dynamic One, Sainthood, Japan’s Kando De Amor, Reincarnate, Kingsbarns, King Fury, Helium, Jaxon Traveler, Dynamic Pick, and Brooklyn Strong.
