The Kentucky Derby, the oldest continuously held sporting event in the U.S., will be run without fans for the first time. Here’s what you need to know.
The Kentucky Derby, the oldest continuously held sporting event in the U.S., will be run without fans for the first time. Here’s what you need to know.
The First Saturday in ... September
ByMelissa HoppertandJoe DrapeSept. 5, 2020
The First Saturday in ... September
The First Saturday in ... September
The Kentucky Derby, the oldest continuously held sporting event in the U.S., will be run without fans for the first time. Here’s what you need to know about the 146th running of the race →
The First Saturday in ... September
The pandemic has wreaked havoc on the Triple Crown schedule. The Belmont, normally the final leg of the Triple Crown, was held in June, and the Preakness, usually second, will come last, on Oct. 3.
But first the Belmont winner, Tiz the Law, must defeat 15 challengers in the Derby, rescheduled from May 2. Post time for the $3 million race is 7:01 p.m. Coverage begins at 2:30 Eastern on NBC.
The First Saturday in ... September
Tiz the Law has looked sharp all week during training.
The First Saturday in ... September
The Derby is held at Churchill Downs, in Louisville, Ky., the city where Breonna Taylor was fatally shot in her apartment in March.
A coalition of activist groups has called for a boycott of the race and its sponsors.
A rare Black owner is pressured to sit out the race
The First Saturday in ... September
Protests are happening downtown and near the track, which is surrounded by a security perimeter.
The First Saturday in ... September
Tiz the Law is owned by Saratoga Springs, N.Y.-based Sackatoga Stable, which campaigned the 2003 Derby and Preakness victor Funny Cide, winning over fans by arriving in a school bus with coolers of beer. This year, there’s two buses (social distancing 😁).
The First Saturday in ... September
The colt, trying to become the second New York-bred to win the Derby behind Funny Cide, has quite the following in Saratoga, where he won the Travers. There’s even Tiz the Law ice cream.🍦
Among his fans is Bob Giordano, who modified stop signs at an intersection near his house in Tiz’s honor. The city took them down, but one signed by the horse’s connections will be auctioned off to support a new racetrack child-care center. There are stop sign T-shirts, too. 🛑
The First Saturday in ... September
“The purpose was to provide something bright in this year of smudge,” said Giordano, a former greeter at Saratoga Race Course, here with his wife, Michele.
The First Saturday in ... September
Tiz the Law, runaway winner of the Belmont in June and the Travers in August, is the 3-5 morning-line favorite.
He is the lowest-priced morning-line favorite since 1989, when the entry of Easy Goer and Awe Inspiring was also 3-5.
So can anyone beat him?
Here's who we think will win
The First Saturday in ... September
And here’s what else you need to know about the 146th Kentucky Derby