With one of the biggest horse races just around the corner, the media has already started to build up the hype for the Kentucky Derby Venue. But, if you are someone that is a casual horse racing fan, you might not know a lot of things about the Derby and why it is so special.
Well, in today’s article we will highlight some of the most important facts about the Kentucky Derby and hopefully get you interested in this special event.
What is The Kentucky Derby?
The Kentucky Derby is a horse race that takes place on the first Saturday in May and it Is a Grade I Stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds. This race is known as the most prestigious horse race in the world that has a lot of history and tradition.
The Kentucky Derby is one of the longest-running horse races in the world managed to run without any interruption since 1875. You can visit to learn more.
The Kentucky Derby takes place at the beautiful Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky which can accommodate more than 150.000 people on the derby day.
Who Can Participate In the Kentucky Derby?
With Kentucky Derby being one of the most popular races on the horse racing calendar, everyone wants to participate in it. However, in order to get a chance to get a place on the starting grid, every horse needs to go through a series of qualifying races called Road to the Kentucky Derby.
Points are awarded to the top four horses finishing the race, and whichever 20 horses have the most points get to participate in the Kentucky Derby.
What is the Prize Up for Grabs at the Kentucky Derby?
The Kentucky Derby cannot be a prestigious race without having a multi-million dollar prize purse up for grabs. When it comes to the total prize purse it is important to mention that organizers tend to change it year by year depending on many factors.
In 2021, the total prize purse was $3 million, with around $1.86 million going to the winner of the race. The winning jockey also receives 10% of the winnings.
What is the Triple Crown?
When you read about the Kentucky Derby you’ll notice a lot of Triple Crown mentions, but what is it? Well, the Kentucky Derby is also special for another reason. It represents the first leg of the Triple Crown, which is the ultimate achievement that a horse can get.
The Triple Crown is an achievement for winning three races tied together, such as the Kentucky Derby, the Belmont Stakes, and Preakness Stakes.
Since all of the races are on the highest level where there is a lot of competition, winning all three is a difficult task. In fact to this date, only thirteen horses managed to achieve the Triple Crown.
Fun Facts About the Kentucky Derby Venue that You Probably Didn’t Know About
Now that you know all the important things about the Kentucky Derby Venue, we can browse through its history and showcase some facts that most people don’t know about.
- With a crowd of 150K, the amount of food consumed at the Derby is astonishing. On average, spectators eat 142,000 hot dogs, 18,000 barbecue sandwiches, 13,800 pounds of beef, 32,000 jumbo shrimp, 8,000 pounds of potatoes, and 30,000 cookies.
- The traditional drink at the Derby is the mint julep, and the audience consumes more than 120,000 drinks each year.
- The Derby is also referred to as ‘The Run for the Roses’ just because the winner is traditionally awarded a blanket sewn with over 400 roses after the race.
- The Derby managed to hold its tradition of being held on the first Saturday in May all years except two. In 1945 the war was postponed, and the second time in 2020 was delayed until September due to Covid-19.
- The Secretaried remains the fastest horse in the Kentucky Derby History with a record time of under 2 minutes.
- The Kentucky Derby is one of the most wagered horse races in the world with more than $233 million wagered each year.
