When Mystik Dan crossed the finish line at Churchill Downs on Saturday night with 18-1 odds, it was a close call. After running over a mile in two minutes and three seconds in the 150th Kentucky Derby, the horse finished just a nose ahead of contenders Sierra Leone and Forever Young.
A close finish at Churchill Downs for the 150th Kentucky Derby! pic.twitter.com/AwCbCvO5xu
— Justin Hicks (@Hicks_JustinM) May 5, 2024
After the race, jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. said he asked an outrider, “Oh god did we just win the Kentucky Derby?”
It was a true photo finish as fans and officials stared at replay screens afterwards to confirm the results.
“Yes, that was the longest two minutes in sports,” Hernandez joked. “[I went] from the fastest two minutes to the longest.”
The win made him the first rider since 2009 to win both the Kentucky Oaks, on horse Thorpedo Anna, and the Kentucky Derby.
At the same moment, trainer Kenny McPeek became the first trainer to win both the Oaks and Derby since 1952. The Lexington-area native said the Derby wins “means everything” to him.
“Having grown up around Keeneland all my life, I can remember my grandfather took me to races at Keeneland when I was a boy. It’s just been an amazing journey,” McPeek said.
The official results were:
- Mystic Dan
- Sierra Leone
- Forever Young
- Catching Freedom
- T O Password
- Resilience
- Stronghold
- Honor Marie
- Endlessly
- Dornoch
- Track Phantom
- West Saratoga
- Domestic Product
- Epic Ride
- Fierceness (the morning line favorite)
- Society Man
- Just Steel
- Grand Mo the First
- Catalytic
- Just a Touch
This story was updated to reflect that T O Password came in fifth place. Churchill Downs officials previously omitted T O Password in the order of finish provided journalists directly after the running of the Kentucky Derby.
