Rich Strike — Perfect name for a perfect payout.
A chestnut colt that was purchased for $30,000 won a staggering $1.86 million in his first stakes victory.
The 80-1 longshot Rich Strike came charging from the rear of the pack to win the Kentucky Derby in the second-biggest upset in the Derby’s 148-year history.
Saturday’s victory was nothing short of a miracle. Rich Strike was entered in the Derby on Friday just 30 seconds before the entry deadline when Ethereal Road was scratched at the last minute, opening up a spot in the gate.
Only a horse called Donerail way back in 1913 topped Rich Strike’s odds when he won at 90-1. The third biggest longshot was Mine That Bird in 2009 at 50-1.
As the 20-horse field roared down the stretch all eyes were on the favorite Epicenter and hotshot closer Zandon who were locked in a tight duel.
Then, like a flash, Rich Strike charged out of nowhere and beat them all in the last strides.
The horse was ridden by Sonny Leon, a Venezuelan jockey in his first big stakes race who normally rides the smallest circuits where the purse is a fraction of the Derby payout.
“When I was in the last 70 yards, I said, ‘I think I got this race,’” Leon said.
“I about fell down in the paddock when he hit the wire,” said the trainer Eric Reed, also in his first Derby. “I about passed out.”
Reed almost gave up his career five years ago when he lost nearly two dozen horses in a fire in his barn in Lexington, Kentucky. But he said the kindness of friends and fellow trainers kept him going.
Rich Strike was purchased last fall by Rick Dawson, who races under the handle RED TR-Racing, for $30,000 after the colt was entered in a low-level claiming race.
“Small trainer, small rider, small stable,” Reed said. “And so anybody that’s in this business, lightening can strike.”
AMAZING AERIAL VIEW OF JOCKEY’S RIDE
The overhead view makes Rich Strike's comeback for the upset @KentuckyDerby win look even more incredible. 😮 #KyDerby | @ChurchillDowns pic.twitter.com/iDfkGVZS0O
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) May 8, 2022