(Louisville) Mystik Dan won the 150 by a nosee edition of the Kentucky Derby, Saturday at Churchill Downs, in what was the closest finish since 1996.
He beat Sierra Leone and Forever Young in the photo finish.
Neglected at 18-1, Mystik Dan and jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. hugged the fence throughout the race and in the final stretch, building a small lead. However, Forever Young and Sierra Leone almost managed to come back in front of the 156,710 spectators gathered.
It was only the 10e time the Kentucky Derby was decided by a nose – the smallest margin in horse racing – and the first time since Grindstone won in 1996.
The crowd had to wait several minutes before the result was confirmed by officials.
“Those were the longest minutes of my life,” Hernandez said. Then to see your number come up as a Derby winner, it’s going to take me a while to really grasp what happened. »
Fierceness, 3-to-1 favorite, settled for 15the rank among the 20 mounts aged 3 years.
Mystik Dan completed the mile and a quarter in 2 minutes 3.34 seconds.
Sierra Leone appeared to bump Forever Young three times during the final segment, but Japanese jockey Ryusei Sakai made no complaint.
Hernandez and breeder Kenny McPeek also teamed up and won the Kentucky Oak for fillies on Friday with Thorpedo Anna. McPeek is the first breeder to sweep both races since Ben Jones in 1952 and the fourth ever.