1978 Kentucky Derby

Last updated
1978 Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
Grade I stakes race
Location Churchill Downs,
Louisville, Kentucky
DateMay 6, 1978
Winning horse Affirmed
Jockey Steve Cauthen
Trainer Laz Barrera
Owner Harbor View Farm
Conditions Fast
SurfaceDirt
Attendance131,004 [1]
  1977
1979  

The 1978 Kentucky Derby was the 104th running of the Kentucky Derby. [2] Affirmed, under jockey Steve Cauthen, won the race by 1 1/2 lengths over Alydar. [3] [4] Believe It finished 3rd, 1 1/4 lengths behind Alydar, and 30:1 longshot Darby Creek Road finished 4th. [5] [6] Affirmed won the Triple Crown by defeating Alydar by decreasing margins in the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes. [3]

Contents

11 horses competed in the race. [3] Alydar went into the race as a 6:5 favorite, despite Affirmed having won 4 of the 6 previous races between the two. [3] Affirmed went off at 9:5. [3] Sensitive Prince and Believe It were the only other horses to go off at less than 30:1, at 9:2 and 7:1 respectively. [5] Sensitive Prince and Affirmed, both frontrunners, were near the lead early in the race behind long shot Raymond Earl. [5] Sensitive Prince took the lead at the first turn, but Affirmed gained the lead at the second turn. [2] After attaining the lead, Affirmed held it for the remainder of the race except for a brief moment when Believe It led by a head. [2] [6] Alydar charged from the outside down the stretch, and overtook Believe It, despite the two horses bumping, but Alydar could not overtake Affirmed. [2] [4] [6]

Payout

The 104th Kentucky Derby Payout Schedule
Program
Number
Horse Name
Win
Place
Show
2 Affirmed $5.60$2.80$2.60
10 Alydar -$2.60$2.40
9 Believe It --$2.80

Results

FinishedPostHorseJockeyTrainerOwnerTime /
behind
Odds
1st2 Affirmed Steve Cauthen [a] Laz Barrera Harbor View Farm 2:01 1/59:5
2nd10 Alydar Jorge Velásquez John M. Veitch Calumet Farm 1126:5
3rd9 Believe It Eddie Maple Woody Stephens Hickory Tree Stable 1147:1
4th7Darby Creek Road Donald Brumfield Lou Rondinello James W. (Wally) & Jody Galbreath Phillips30:1
5th3Esops Foibles Chris McCarron Loren Rettele Jerry Frankel 45:1
6th11 Sensitive Prince Mickey Solomone H. Allen Jerkens Top of the Marc Stable (Joseph Taub)9:2
7th8Dr. ValeriRene Riera Jr.Aurelio M. PerezVirginio & Ronal Renzi90:1
8th5Hoist the Silver Richard DePass [b] Richard J. FischerWashington Stud (Jack E. Dasso/D. Golab/Perry Levinson/E.M. Solomon)99:1
9th6Chief of DixielandAnthony RiniJake MorrealeDixie-Jake, Inc.99:1
10th1Raymond Earl Robert L. Baird [c] Smiley Adams Robert N. Lehmann99:1
11th4Special HonorPaul NicoloElwood D. McCannLinda Gaston & Alvin D. Haynes99:1

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Affirmed</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Affirmed was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the eleventh winner of the American Triple Crown. Affirmed was well known for his famous rivalry with Alydar, whom he met ten times, including Alydar coming second in each of the three 1978 Triple Crown races. After Affirmed won the Triple Crown, there was a 37-year wait until American Pharoah swept the series in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seattle Slew</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Seattle Slew was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who became the tenth winner of the American Triple Crown (1977). He is one of only two horses to have won the Triple Crown while being undefeated in any previous race; the second was Justify who won the Triple Crown in 2018 and is descended from Seattle Slew. Seattle Slew was the 1977 Horse of the Year and a champion at ages two, three, and four. In the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century Seattle Slew was ranked ninth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alydar</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Alydar was an American Thoroughbred race horse and sire. A chestnut colt, he was most famous for finishing a close second to Affirmed in all three races of the 1978 Triple Crown. With each successive race, Alydar narrowed Affirmed's margin of victory; Affirmed won by 1.5 lengths in the Kentucky Derby, by a neck in the Preakness and by a head in the Belmont Stakes. Alydar has been described as the best horse in the history of Thoroughbred racing never to have won a championship. Alydar's fame continued when he got older. He died under suspicious circumstances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smarty Jones</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Smarty Jones is a champion Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and came second in the Belmont Stakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Real Quiet</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Real Quiet was an American Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. He was nicknamed "The Fish" by his trainer due to his narrow frame. He is best remembered for winning the first two legs of American Triple Crown: the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes. His loss in the third leg, the Belmont Stakes, was the smallest margin of defeat ever at only four inches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Cauthen</span> American jockey

Steve Cauthen is a retired American jockey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kent Desormeaux</span> American jockey (b. 1970)

Kent Jason Desormeaux is an American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who holds the U.S. record for most races won in a single year with 598 wins in 1989. He has won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes three times each, and the Belmont Stakes once. Aboard Real Quiet, he lost the 1998 Triple Crown by a nose.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alysheba</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Alysheba was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that won two legs of the Triple Crown in 1987. A successful sire, he produced 11 stakes winners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spectacular Bid</span> American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse

Spectacular Bid was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1979 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. He holds the world record for the fastest 10 furlongs on dirt, and also broke several track records. He won 26 of his 30 races and earned a then-record $2,781,607. He also won Eclipse Awards in each of his three racing seasons.

Lazaro Sosa Barrera was a Cuban-born American Hall of Fame thoroughbred racehorse trainer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chic Anderson</span>

Charles David "Chic" Anderson was an American sportscaster and public address announcer specializing in Thoroughbred horse racing. He was one of American sports' most famous PA voices, and remains among its most revered race callers. Anderson's narration of the 1973 Belmont Stakes, where he described Secretariat as "moving like a tremendous machine", remains one of horse racing's most memorable calls.

Jorge Velásquez is a thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prince Palatine</span> British Thoroughbred racehorse

Prince Palatine (1908–1924) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. He was named for County Palatine of Lancaster near where his breeder William Hall Walker had been raised.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calvin Borel</span> American jockey

Calvin H. Borel is an American jockey in thoroughbred horse racing and rode the victorious mount in the 2007 Kentucky Derby, the 2009 Kentucky Derby and the 2010 Kentucky Derby. His 2009 Derby win with Mine That Bird was the third biggest upset in Derby history,, and Borel's winning margin of 6+34 lengths was the greatest in Derby history since Assault won by 8 lengths in 1946. On May 1, 2009, Borel won the Kentucky Oaks aboard Rachel Alexandra, only the second time since 1993 that a jockey has won the Oaks-Derby combo, and just the seventh time overall a jockey has accomplished this feat in the same year. On May 16, 2009, Borel won the 2009 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico with thoroughbred filly Rachel Alexandra. In doing so, Borel became the first jockey to win the first two jewels of the Triple Crown on different mounts. Borel's nickname is "Bo'rail'" due to his penchant for riding close to the rail to save ground.

Sensitive Prince was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Out of the mare Sensitive Lady, he was sired by U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Majestic Prince.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States)</span> American Thoroughbred horse racing honor for winning three specific stakes races as a three-year-old

In the United States, the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, commonly known as the Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for three-year-old Thoroughbreds, consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes. The three races were inaugurated in different years, the last being the Kentucky Derby in 1875. The Triple Crown Trophy, commissioned in 1950 but awarded to all previous winners as well as those after 1950, is awarded to a horse who wins all three races and is thereafter designated as a Triple Crown winner. The races are traditionally run in May and early June of each year, although global events have resulted in schedule adjustments, such as in 1945 and 2020.

The 1978 Preakness Stakes was the 103rd running of the $210,000 Grade 1 Preakness Stakes thoroughbred horse race. The race took place on May 20, 1978, and was televised in the United States on the ABC television network. Affirmed, who was jockeyed by Steve Cauthen, won the race by a head over runner-up Alydar, repeating Affirmed's close victory over Alydar in the Kentucky Derby. Believe It finished 3rd, repeating his result from the Kentucky Derby. Approximate post time was 5:41 p.m. Eastern Time. The race was run on a fast track in a final time of 1:54-2/5. The Maryland Jockey Club reported total attendance of 81,261, this is recorded as second highest on the list of American thoroughbred racing top attended events for North America in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Belmont Stakes</span> 146th running of the Belmont Stakes

The 2014 Belmont Stakes was the 146th running of the Belmont Stakes. It was run on June 7, 2014, and was televised on NBC. California Chrome had a chance to complete the third leg of the Triple Crown after his victories in the 2014 Kentucky Derby and the 2014 Preakness Stakes. However, it was Tonalist who won the race. Commissioner placed second and Medal Count took third. California Chrome finished in a tie for fourth with Wicked Strong.

Believe It was an American bred racehorse. His sire was In Reality and his dam was Breakfast Bell. He won 6 of his 17 starts. His biggest win was the 1978 Wood Memorial Stakes. He also won the 1977 Remsen Stakes, defeating Alydar by two lengths on a sloppy track, the only loss either Alydar or Affirmed suffered to a horse other than each other prior to the 1978 Kentucky Derby.

<i>Thoroughbred Racing on CBS</i> American TV series or program

Thoroughbred Racing on CBS is the de facto title for a series of horse races events whose broadcasts are produced by CBS Sports, the sports division of the CBS television network in the United States.

References

  1. "9‐5 Affirmed, Cauthen Up, Wins Kentucky Derby". The New York Times. 7 May 1978. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Affirmed Wins!". Churchill Downs . Retrieved 2015-05-17.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Mitchell, R. (January 12, 2001). "Triple Crown Winner Affirmed Euthanized". Blood Horse. Retrieved 2015-05-17.
  4. 1 2 Rees, J. (January 18, 2015). "Kentucky Derby countdown: Affirmed, 1978". The Courier-Journal . Retrieved 2015-05-17.
  5. 1 2 3 1978 Kentucky Derby telecast. ABC. May 1978.
  6. 1 2 3 Sowers, R. (2014). The Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes: A Comprehensive History. McFarland. p. 232. ISBN   9780786476985.
  7. Nationwide Newsnet (2021-04-29). "No Caribbean Representative Will be at the Kentucky Derby". Nationwide Radio JM. Retrieved 2024-04-18.