Golden Tempo Wins Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs

Golden Tempo (Phipps Stable and St. Elias Stables) ridden by jockey Jose Ortiz, rallied dramatically from last place to pass Renegade (4-1 early morning-line favorite and ridden by brother Irad Ortiz) in the final yards to win by a neck, in the 152nd running of the Kentucky Derby (G1).

The first leg of horse racing's Triple Crown for 3-year-olds ran on a brisk Saturday (May 2) at Churchill Downs before a crowd of 150,415 and christened Cherie DeVaux as the first woman to train a Kentucky Derby winner.

DeVaux became the 19th female trainer to start a runner in the Kentucky Derby.

Golden Tempo (a 23-1 long shot) completed the mile and a quarter on a fast main track in 2:02.27 and made Ortiz the ninth rider to sweep the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby in the same year. Brian Hernandez Jr. was the most recent rider to do that in 2024 with Thorpedo Anna and Mystik Dan.

Six Speed set a blistering pace of :22.68 and :46.44 while being hounded by So Happy and Danon Bourbon while Golden Tempo raced far back in last place. The top three remained unchanged through six furlongs in 1:10.90 and Golden Tempo was still last but starting to gather momentum.

On the far turn, Ortiz began to thread his way through horses as was second choice Renegade who also was far back early. At the top of the stretch, Golden Tempo had only five horses beaten.

Up front, Danon Bourbon had put his head in front and by the eighth pole had surged to a 2-length lead. But the closers were coming with Ocelli, the longest shot in the race at 70-1, putting his head in front at the sixteenth pole.

Renegade hit the front 50 yards from the wire only to have Golden Tempo rocket by in the shadow of the wire to claim the roses.

The victory was worth $3.1 million for the Kentucky-bred son of Curlin out of the Bernardini mare Carrumba. Now a two-time graded stakes winner with a record of 5-3-0-2, Golden Tempo increased his earnings to $3,433,000.

Golden Tempo returned $48.24, $19.14, $11.90. Renegade, ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. returned $7.14 and $5.46 with Ocelli paying $36.34 to show under Tyler Gaffalione.

Following in order were Chief Wallabee, Danon Bourbon, Incredibolt, Commandment, Wonder Dean (JPN), So Happy, Emerging Market, Further Ado, Potente, Six Speed, Robusta, Albus, Intrepido, Litmus Test and Pavlovian. Great White was scratched at the gate.

Jose Ortiz (Jockey, Golden Tempo, winner) - "We always knew this horse had a lot of ability. You could see early in his career we tried things because he's a lazy horse. I knew always Golden Tempo would be my Derby mount. This is an incredible experience. I just won the Kentucky Derby!"

Cherie DeVaux (Trainer, Golden Tempo, winner) - "He's a dead closer and the Louisiana Derby really solidified he was getting there from the eighth pole home. If he had extra ground he was going to make it. We had to have faith in the process, faith in the horse, faith in Jose (Ortiz). That was an incredible experience. I'm so proud of this horse!"

Irad Ortiz Jr. (Jockey, Renegade, second) - "We got squeezed at the start. We came flying late, but the winner just got the jump on me. He ran very well."

Todd Pletcher (Trainer, Renegade, second) - "He got a little roughed and got pushed out of his position. But he kept on going and made his run. He just didn't get there today."

Tyler Gaffalione (Jockey, Ocelli, third) - "He gave me a really good run and proud of his effort. We were just not able to get the job done but hats off to the winner and runner-up. They ran huge races."

Whit Beckman (Trainer, Ocelli, third) - "As he was coming down the stretch and I saw him with a chance to win - my mind went blank. Then I snapped back in and saw him finish. I'm so proud of him and he showed he belongs with all these good horses."

Junior Alvarado (Jockey, Chief Wallabee, fourth) - "I had a good trip, I thought I was in the position I wanted to be. I was following Further Ado, and at the eighth pole, things got a little tight and we lost a little momentum. But he ran a pretty good race, nothing to be ashamed of. He gave me what he had today."

Bill Mott (Trainer, Chief Wallabee, fourth) - "He got jostled and he got squeezed. But he kept on coming and I'm very proud of his run."

Jaime Torres (Jockey, Incredibolt, sixth) - "It went great, we were able to relax early and he gave me a really good run. I am very proud of him."

Luis Saez (Jockey, Commandment, seventh) - "It was a rough trip, everybody was all over the place. He ran pretty well and made a nice move, but it was just a tough race."

Mike Smith (Jockey, So Happy, eighth) - "He just did too much early on and we went too fast."

Flavien Prat (Jockey, Emerging Marrket, 10th) - "I didn't watch the replay but I thought I had a decent trip. I just came up empty. I just couldn't make any move when it was time to go. A gap did open, but at that point I just did not have enough horse to go through."

John Velazquez (Jockey, Further Ado, 11th) - "I had a great trip. He didn't have any fight and I didn't have enough to fight on with."

Juan Hernandez (Jockey, Potente, 12th) - "I had a good trip, my horse broke beautifully and I was saving ground. We were able to drop down on the first turn, and he relaxed beautifully on the backside. I honestly thought when I asked him he was really going to pick it up, but he was a little one paced from there. He tried hard; we just didn't have it today. He's a nice colt."

Brian Hernandez Jr. (Jockey, Six Speed, 13th) - "We made it to the lead, and he was a little aggressive the first time under the wire, but I got him to turn off and relax a little on the backside. I think the distance was maybe just a little much for him."

Cristian Torres (Jockey, Robusta, 14th) - "I was trying to be closer, but they were going too fast and I got caught wide into the first turn. We could not make up ground on them late. Riding in the Derby was an amazing experience that I didn't want to end."

Manny Franco (Jockey, Albus, 15th) - "I got squeezed out of the gate and then I stayed in the back. I was hoping then that the horses in front of me would come back and they did but my horse was just flat today."

Martin Garcia (Jockey, Litmus Test, 17th) - "He broke good and sat behind the early pace. I had the rail open for a time but my horses just didn't keep going. I guess he didn't like it inside."

Edwin Maldonado (Jockey, Pavlovian, 18th) - "He broke good. There are a few horses that got sent to the lead in front us so there was no point of us rushing up on the first turn. I just settled in fifth but he didn't have it today. We hit the three-eighths pole and that was it."