One of the most active and exciting weeks in recent memory has arrived in North American Thoroughbred racing. Normally, Labor Day weekend in the sport of kings means closing weekend at two of the sport’s most iconic tracks – Saratoga and Del Mar – and historic races such as the Woodward Stakes, Hopeful Stakes, and Del Mar Futurity.

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But this year, the first week in September is boosted with the addition of another one of the sport’s annual traditions – Kentucky Derby week. The Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve and the Longines Kentucky Oaks were both postponed four months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and will be held on the first Friday and Saturday in September rather than their usual first Friday/Saturday in May dates.

The Derby and Oaks anchor eight hours of live broadcasts from NBC Sports on Sept. 4 and 5. On Friday, Sept. 4, NBCSN will show the Kentucky Oaks and other stakes races from Churchill Downs on a three-hour show from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET. Post time for the 146^th Longines Kentucky Oaks is 5:45 p.m. ET. NBCSN will also present four encore showings of "Born to Run," a one-hour documentary on 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, airing on Sept. 3, Sept. 4, and Sept. 5 (see below schedule).

On Saturday, Sept. 5, NBC will air five hours of coverage from Churchill Downs including six other stakes races and culminating with the 146^th run for the roses. The broadcast runs from 2:30-7:30 p.m. ET and will be hosted remotely by Mike Tirico, with analysis from Randy Moss and Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey and handicapping insight from Eddie Olczyk. Reporters Donna Brothers, Britney Eurton, Laffit Pincay III and Kenny Rice will be on-site at Churchill Downs along with race caller Larry Collmus. NBC Sports’ Rutledge Wood will host a virtual watch party from his home.

Highlights of Kentucky Derby coverage Saturday on NBC include:

• A feature on the connections of Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets and Runhappy Travers Stakes winner Tiz the Law, whose New York-based ownership group also won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes with Funny Cide in 2003.
• A look at Finnick the Fierce, a one-eyed gelding who is the only horse in the Derby field to finish ahead of Tiz the Law in a race, placing second in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs on Nov. 30 (Tiz the Law was third).
• A history of Black jockeys in the Kentucky Derby. Black jockeys rode the winning horse in 15 of the first 28 runnings of the Kentucky Derby.
• Mike Tirico speaks with Louisville native and world #3-ranked golfer Justin Thomas.
• Tim Layden takes a look back at the most unusual 2019 Kentucky Derby which featured the disqualification of first-place finisher Maximum Security, and presents an essay on this year’s unique Triple Crown season.
• Jerry Bailey and Randy Moss remotely go “around the barns” to meet the Derby contenders.

Saratoga’s final six days of racing will be broadcast on Fox Sports’ “Saratoga Live,” and as a bonus for racing fans, the NYRA-produced show will also show live races from Churchill during Kentucky Derby week that are not telecast on NBC or NBCSN. That coverage begins on Tuesday, Sept. 1, with a broadcast of “America’s Day at the Races” focusing on Churchill Downs. “Saratoga Live” then picks back up on Wednesday, Sept. 2 and runs through Labor Day on Monday, Sept. 7. Highlights of the week include New York Showcase Day on Friday, Sept. 4 with six stakes races, the 67^th running of the Woodward Stakes for older horses on Saturday, Sept. 5, and the 116^th running of the Runhappy Hopeful Stakes for 2-year-olds on the track’s closing Labor Day card.

“America’s Day at the Races” and “Saratoga Live” will be shown on either FS1 or FS2 during the week. The shows will also air on MSG+ and on regional Fox outlets Prime Ticket and Fox Sports San Diego – check NYRA’s website for those dates and times.

Del Mar also winds down its summer meet this weekend, ending on Labor Day. All Del Mar races, including the 73^rd running of the Runhappy Del Mar Futurity on closing day Sept. 7, will be shown on TVG as part of their comprehensive on-site coverage.

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America’s Best Racing is also presenting a jam-packed week of live streaming shows, beginning with our weekly “Five in Five” show with Dan Tordjman and Penelope Miller on Tuesday, Sept. 1, at 12:30 p.m. ET. The show streams on ABR's Facebook Live page and Twitter channel.

“Woodbine Live,” ABR’s live-streaming program in partnership with Woodbine focusing on Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing at the Ontario track, continues this Thursday at 6 p.m. ET. “Woodbine Live” is hosted by ABR’s Dan Tordjman along with Ashley Mailloux, Emily Gullikson and Robert Reid Jr. and will be shown on ABR’s Facebook Live, Twitter and YouTube pages. The live-streaming show coincides with Woodbine’s own "Racing Night Live" program, which is available for viewing on The Sports Network (TSN) in Canada and in the U.S. will be shown on ABR’s YouTube channel.

Also on Thursday, ABR presents "Betting After Dark" after the Woodbine programs. The show features gambling analysis from ESPN Radio sports bettor Anita Marks and horse racing analyst Ashley Mailloux. Anita and Ashley will be taking a look at Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Oaks, and other big races. It will be live streamed on ABR's Facebook Live and YouTube and on Anita's Twitter account starting at approximately 8:30 p.m. ET.

As a special event for Kentucky Derby week, join Joy Taylor, co-host of “The Herd with Colin Cowherd,” for a Kentucky Derby Preview Show, presented by America's Best Racing on Friday, Sept. 4, at 4 p.m. ET. Joy will be joined racing analysts and betting experts Gabby Gaudet of TVG, Matt Bernier of NBC Sports and Chris "The Bear" Fallica of ESPN. The show live streams on Joy Taylor’s Facebook Live and Twitter channels.

ABR's new streaming show broadcast in Spanish and English, "La Trifecta," continues on Fridays. The show features analysis from Claudia Spadaro, Darwin Vizcaya and Annise Montplaisir. It’s available on ABR’s Facebook Live, Twitter, and YouTube pages and on Annise's Twitter account.

And on Kentucky Derby day, join America's Best Racing and hosts Matt Bernier (NBC Sports), Ren Carothers (Breeders' Cup Future Stars Forecast), Bram Weinstein (ESPN Radio) and Dan Tordjman (ABR) for three hours of continuous live streaming coverage. “Derby Live” will feature live reports and updates from the track, celebrity guests, racing analysis and more. Set a reminder to tune in on Saturday, Sept. 5, beginning at 4 p.m. on ABR’s Facebook Live, Twitter, and YouTube channels.

A don’t-miss highlight of this weekend’s radio coverage is "The Winner’s Circle," America’s Best Racing’s podcast presented by NYRA Bets. The show, hosted by Bram Weinstein, airs at 10 a.m. ET on Saturdays through Nov. 7 on Sports Map Radio. Subscribe to "The Winner's Circle" on Apple Podcasts to listen to archived episodes.

The Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby edition of "Winner's Circle" podcast will feature analysis from retired Hall of Fame jockey and "Saratoga Live" analyst Gary Stevens and also the following featured guests: NBC Sports horse racing analyst Randy Moss; Greg Harbut, co-owner of Derby starter Necker Island; and Adam Beschizza, jockey for Derby starter Enforceable.

Here’s a rundown of television and radio coverage for the upcoming weekend.

TV/Live Streaming Schedule

Note: All times listed are Eastern

Radio Schedule

Note: All times listed are Eastern