Medina Spirit wins Kentucky Derby; Bob Baffert does it again
Medina Spirit overcame tough odds to win the 147th Kentucky Derby on Saturday, giving trainer Bob Baffert a record seventh Derby victory.
Medina Spirit, mounted by jockey John Velazquez, broke out of the gate with an early lead and held fast as the race entered the final stretch.
Essential Quality, taking fourth place, was the horse to beat. Entering the race as a favorite with 5-2 odds, the undefeated horse's late sprint from the outside couldn't match Medina Spirit's speed.
"I cannot believe he won this race," said Baffert, whose horse came in with 12-1 odds. "That little horse has heart. ... He won it today."
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"He's always shown that he's an overachiever," the Hall of Fame trainer added. "I didn't know if he had that in him."
Baffert praised Velazquez's belief in the horse: "He got it done."
The jockey credited Medina Spirit's stamina.
"Every time I asked him for a little more, he gave me more," Velazquez said. "I was more tired than he was."
Churchill Downs spectators enjoyed sunny weather and, with reduced capacity due to the pandemic, less-congested festivities. The event drew more than 51,800 attendees — about 40 percent of the Derby's normal crowd, said officials.
"In days past, that's all you did all day: wait in line for everything. Go watch the race, then get in line, get in line for a drink, get in line for the bathroom," one local, Tina Cox, told the Associated Press.
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