Second favorite Sovereignty, guided by Junior Alvarado, outran Journalism (Umberto Rispoli), the 3-1 favorite, on the final straight on a muddy track to win the Kentucky Derby by 1½ lengths at Churchill Downs on Saturday night, May 3.
The dueling thoroughbreds were neck and neck entering the stretch in a pulsating finish before 147,000-plus spectators.
Kentucky Derby debutant Joao Moreira, Japanese owner Koichi Nishikawa's entrant, placed 12th aboard Luxor Cafe, a progeny of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, in the 151st Run for the Roses.
Also for Japan, Admire Daytona, ridden by Christophe Lemaire, rounded out the 19-horse field in last place. He was owner Junko Kondo's first horse to compete in the American Triple Crown opener in Louisville, Kentucky.
Luxor Cafe and Admire Daytona, supervised by trainers Noriyuki Hori and Yukihiro Kato, respectively, were both listed at 30-1 odds on the morning of the race.
Sixth Time's a Charm for Alvarado
Following the 1-2 finish of Sovereignty and Journalism, Baeza (Flavien Prat), Final Gambit (Luan Machado), Owen Almighty (Javier Castellano) and Burnham Square (Brian Hernandez Jr, winner of the 2024 Derby aboard Mystik Dan) completed the top six in order. (Watch the race on YouTube.)
Winning jockey Alvarado, 38, who was appearing in the race for the sixth time called it "more than a dream come true."
"I thought I had a great chance," the Venezuelan said after his first Derby victory, according to The Associated Press before adding, "I was confident the whole week."
Journalism had entered the high-profile race with four consecutive wins, but fell short of trainer Michael McCarthy's ultimate goal.
Rispoli gave an upbeat review of his bay colt's effort.
"I had a beautiful trip, I had the trip I wanted and saved ground into the first turn," Rispoli commented. "On the backside, I had a lot of horses in front of me that didn't appear to have a chance. So I knew I had enough horse still and waited for the right time.
"Past the half-mile pole he started running for me. I was smoothly getting him into a rhythm. I wanted to turn for home with just a couple of horses ahead of me. That's what happened but Sovereignty was the best today."
Mott Claims 2nd Kentucky Derby Victory
It was Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott's second Derby triumph. He oversaw Country Horse's win in 2019. (Maximum Security reached the wire first but was disqualified.)
"This one got there the right way," Mott was quoted as saying by The Associated Press. "I mean, he's done well, he's a great horse, he comes from a great organization (Godolphin) and I can't say enough about the horse and the organization that started him out and made this happen."
Reactions from Kentucky Derby Jockeys
After placing third, Prat shared the following comments with reporters: "From the outside, I thought the pace would be a bit stronger. I wasn't able to get myself inside. I didn't like the horse I was following in the first turn. Down the backside I got a better position to try and get a breather. He made a really good run."
Reacting to Luxor Cafe's performance, Brazilian jockey Moreira, who has won three Japan Racing Association Grade 1 races in 2025, acknowledged his horse didn't have an ideal start from the No 7 post position.
"He didn't have the best of trips," Moreira told reporters. "[And] he didn't jump all that well and was squeezed at the start. Unfortunately he didn't perform as well as we hoped."
Lemaire, making his third appearance in the Kentucky Derby, expressed disappointment after the race.
"He was not comfortable on the sloppy track," Lemaire said of Admire Daytona. The French jockey then said, "He started well, got a good position but couldn't follow the pace on the backstretch. He just lost his action and motivation."
A Look Ahead
The second leg of the American Triple Crown, the 150th Preakness Stakes, is scheduled for May 17 in Baltimore, Maryland.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
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