Each week, members of the national media vote on the nation's top contenders on the Triple Crown trail in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top Thoroughbred Poll.
Barry Irwin, now the head of Team Valor International, was entering his teenage years in Southern California when Swaps burst onto the scene in 1955.
“He just really excited me and caught my imagination,” Irwin recalled.
Irwin was hardly alone. Swaps’ popularity became so enormous that Union 76 gas stations began distributing posters of him. “I kept pushing my father to get gas there so I could get more pictures,” Irwin said.
BloodHorse news editor Byron King presents his final Derby Dozen for 2026, with a look at his leading contenders for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve on May 2.
Sofia Thompson knew little to nothing about the racing industry until a summer job several years ago, working as a hotwalker in the barn of Hall of Famer Bill Mott, changed the course of her life.
NBC Sports will again provide extensive coverage of the $5 million Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve at Churchill Downs on Saturday as well as the $1.5 million Longines Kentucky Oaks, which will be broadcast in prime time the night before.
