2009 Kentucky Derby Results and Analysis

by Patricia Woo | May 4 2009

The 2009 Kentucky Derby was dominated all season long by news of injured top contenders - Midshipman, Old Fashioned, I Want Revenge, The Pamplemousse, Win Willy and Square Eddie, just to name a few . But the 135th Run for the Roses, which took place on Saturday, May 2, at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., will go down in history as the race in which a 50-1 longshot named Mine That Bird romped to victory.

Mine That Bird, a son of Birdstone, was a late entry to the Kentucky Derby.  With graded stakes of only $138,705, the Bennie Woolley-trained 3-year-old gelding was on the bubble of eligibility with only a single graded stakes win to his name - the Gr. 3 $250,000 Grey Stakes at Woodbine in 2008. He followed up that victory with a dismal performance in the 2008 Breeders' Cup Juvenile, finishing 12th - dead last - in a field that included Square Eddie and Midshipman. And the losses would keep coming. Mine That Bird finished second and fourth in two consecutive races at Sunland Park in February and March, and he seemed outclassed in a Derby field that included the likes of frontrunners Dunkirk and Pioneerof the Nile. But as 2005 Kentucky Derby champion Giacomo would attest - himself a 50-1 longshot - the past matters little on the first Saturday in May.

After race favorite Friesan Fire injured himself breaking from the gate and frontrunner Dunkirk stumbled from his post, the race was suddenly wide open. Ridden masterfully by jockey Calvin Borel, Mine That Bird navigated the field from last place after being bumped shortly after breaking from post 8. In true Borel style, the duo hugged the rail for almost a mile, chasing expected pacesetter Join in the Dance. At the far turn, top contender Pioneerof the Nile (trained by Bob Baffert) emerged to make a bid for the lead, along with Regal Ransom. But they were no match for Mine That Bird, who split the leaders at the quarter pole and then charged along the rail to victory. Santa Anita Derby champion Pioneerof the Nile hit the wire next, a well-beaten runner-up, followed closely by Illinois Derby and Tampa Bay Derby winner Musket Man (who is trained by Derek Ryan). Mine That Bird's winning time was 2:02.66 and earned owners Mark Allen of Double Eagle Ranch and Leonard Blach of Buena Suerta Equine a whopping $1,417,200. He paid $103.20, the second largest payout in Kentucky Derby history.

Winning trainer Bennie Woolley, who was on crutches trackside recovering from a motorcycle accident, was overcome by the victory. "I can't say enough," Woolley said, a relative unknown to horse racing fans before Derby day. "This is a feeling like I've never had before."

Mine That Bird will now have a shot at Triple Crown glory, as he may take on 13 others in the 2009 Preakness Stakes; Woolley will certainly take a few days to reevaluate his charge and soak in the victory. The second leg of the Triple Crown series will take place on Saturday, May 16 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md.

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