The foreign flavor in the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve will come into focus Saturday with the running of the United Arab Emirates Derby Sponsored by Jumeirah at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai.
BloodHorse news editor Byron King presents his weekly Derby Dozen for 2026, with a look at his leading contenders for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve on May 2.
Hall of Fame jockey Calvin Borel has engineered his share of upsets on the big stage, perhaps most famously guiding Mine That Bird to a stunning, rail-skimming 50.60-1 score in the slop in the 2009 Kentucky Derby.
Borel’s win aboard Rockamundo in the 1993 Arkansas Derby must rank right up there with the biggest shockers ever on the Kentucky Derby trail.
“We understand that anyone that reads the [Daily Racing Form] would’ve thought we were crazy to run this horse,” owner Gary West on Rockamundo’s participation in the 1993 Arkansas Derby.
Last year, social media content creator Griffin Johnson became one of horse racing’s leading ambassadors as he took millions of his fans on an exciting journey to the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve with Sandman.
Thirty-three stakes races on Saturday, highlighted by graded stakes action at Fair Grounds, Turfway Park, Oaklawn Park, and Santa Anita Park, resulted in major changes on the Equibase leaderboard in the 3-year-old and older divisions.
