Rich Strike produced a sensational 80-1 upset to win the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.
The Eric Reed-trained colt only made the field on Friday with the scratching of Ethereal Road, but powered home from an unpromising position under Sonny Leon to stun favourite Epicenter and Zandon.
The winner had just a couple behind him entering the back stretch, with the first half-mile run at almost sprint speed.
Leon made his move rounding the home turn on the outside of Mo Donegal, edging his way through traffic and finding a lane on the inside rail, before cutting to the outside of Messier to lunge late and deny Steve Asmussen's Epicenter, who had taken over at the top of the stretch. Zandon was third.
The overhead view 😳😳 pic.twitter.com/wo3rJE1LSO
— Kentucky Derby (@KentuckyDerby) May 8, 2022
It was a fairytale success for Reed, who lost 23 of his horses in a fire at his barn in 2016.
"I fell down the paddock when he hit the wire, I’m so happy. This is why everyone does this – we’re not supposed to be here, but I knew this horse loved the track and he’d been training so good all year," he told NBC Sports.
"Sonny Leon – they know who he is now."
Owner Richard Dawson said: "We'd never put a horse in a race we didn’t think we had a chance of winning, I promise you.
"We just knew we had a shot, because every time he went longer [in distance], he got better. Today we went a mile and a quarter and he kept going.
"Eric is the reason I’m in the industry right now, I was ready to get out. I was disenchanted with the whole thing, but I met Eric through a close friend and I thought, 'you know what, I like this guy and I’m going to give it another shot’.
"It’s been nothing but a great ride since."
