
Wilkes and Mentor Nafzger Hoping to Recapture Derby-Winning Magic With Burnham Square
The road to the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve makes its first-ever stop in June this Saturday, with points up for grabs in the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby at Santa Anita Park. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the Kentucky Derby has been rescheduled for Sept. 5 and qualifying races are now slated for this summer.
Read on for a rundown on this year’s Santa Anita Derby by the numbers.
1 1/8 miles- The distance of the Santa Anita Derby.
1:47- The fastest time the race has been completed in. Three winners share this record: Lucky Debonair in 1965, Sham in 1973, and Indian Charlie in 1998.
$2.40- The winning payout on 1950 winner Your Host. No victor has ever been sent off at shorter odds.
5- The number of times the race has been decided by a nose, the last such occasion coming in 2012 when I’ll Have Another defeated Creative Cause.
9- Trainer Bob Baffert has a record nine wins in the race, including the last two years. This year he’ll have one of the top choices in Authentic.
11 lengths- The record margin of victory when Sunday Silence defeated Flying Continental and four others in the 1989 edition of the race.
15- The number of times a Santa Anita Derby runner was named champion 3-year-old male or 3-year-old filly, most recently 2018 winner Justify.
17 years old- Jockey Pat Valenzuela’s age when he won the 1980 edition aboard Codex.
18- The total number of Santa Anita Derby runners who later won the Kentucky Derby, including Justify, 2014 winner California Chrome, and 2012 winner I’ll Have Another.
83rd- This year is the 83rd edition of the historic race first run in 1935.
$89.70- Payoff for a $2 ticket on 1974 winner Destroyer, the longest shot ever to triumph in the race.
170 points- The total Kentucky Derby qualifying points at stake this Saturday, with the winner’s 100-point share virtually guaranteeing him a place in the starting gate.
2000- The year Jenine Sahadi trained the winner of the race, becoming the first, and to date only, woman to do so. Sahadi trained 2.40-1 second choice The Deputy to victory.
63,130- Total fans in attendance at Santa Anita for the 1984 Santa Anita Derby, a record. This year’s race will have zero fans as the track isn’t open to spectators due to COVID-19 restrictions.
$400,000- Total purse of this year’s race.
$25,789,265- Record dollars bet on Santa Anita Derby day races, occurring in the year 2000.