Kentucky Derby Chart and Facts
Second Largest Crowd in History Cheered Big Brown, Eight Belles
A record crowd, second largest in its history, attended the Kentucky Derby May 3. Big Brown put himself in the top 20 of Derby speedsters. Filly Eight Belles ran 2nd.
On May 3, the number 157,770 marked the second largest crowd in the history of the Kentucky Derby. Big Brown easily handled the Derby field, as predicted, and the filly Eight Belles finished second, 4-3/4 lengths back.
Big Brown became only the seventh Derby champion to enter the race unbeaten and win it, and he is the second horse in Derby history to win the event with three previous starts in his career. The filly Regret entered with three starts in 1915. Also in the record books as a top achievement for Big Brown is his Derby time of 2:01.82, which ranks 19th all-time in a tie with champions Riva Ridge (1972), Majestic Prince (1969), Chateaugay (1963), and Swaps (1955).
Big Brown is only the second Derby champion to win the Run for the Roses off just two Derby prep races. Street Sense became the first to do it in 2007. Big Brown and Clyde Van Dusen (1929) are the only Derby horses to win the race from Post Position 20.
Here's the 2008 Kentucky Derby finishing positions:
1. Big Brown
2. Eight Belles -- 4-3/4 lengths back
3. Denis of Cork -- 3-1/2 lengths behind No.2
4. Tale of Ekati -- 2-3/4 lengths behind No.3
5. Recapturetheglory -- 3/4 length behind No.4
6. Colonel John -- 2-1/2 lengths behind No.5
7. Anak Nakal -- 3/4 lengths behind No.6
8. Pyro -- nose behind No.7
9. Cowboy Cal -- 3/4 length behind No.8
10. Z Fortune -- 3-3/4 lengths behind No.9
11. Smooth Air -- 1-1/2 lengths behind No.10
12. Visionaire -- 1-3/4 lengths behind No.11
13. Court Vision -- 1-1/2 lengths behind No.12
14. Z Humor -- neck behind No.13
15. Cool Coal Man -- 7-1/4 lengths behind No.14
16. Bob Black Jack -- neck behind No.15
17. Gayego -- 4-3/4 lengths behind No.16
18. Big Truck -- 12 lengths behind No.17
19 Adriano -- 2 lengths behind No.18
20 Monba -- 8-1/4 lengths behind No.19
Traditionally run on the first Saturday in May, the Kentucky Derby is the first of the three classics that make up the Thoroughbred American Triple Crown. It's winner is automatically thrown into the season's floodlights as a triple classic contender. No horse has won the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978. There is no living American Triple Crown winner. Seattle Slew, the last living triple champion, who won all three races in 1977, died in 2002.
Preakness Stakes Field Not Set
Big Brown is pointed to Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, MD May 17 to try to capture the second of the triple classics, the Preakness Stakes. No other Derby entrants have applied to the Preakness, although Recapturetheglory is a possibility.
New shooters might include horses that didn't make the graded stakes earnings for the limited Derby field of twenty, such as Behindatthebar, Harlem Rocker, Giant Moon, Kentucky Bear, Stevil, El Gato Malo, Yankee Bravo, and Tres Borrachos.
