Rank outsider Country House wins Kentucky Derby
Maximum Security becomes the first horse in the history of the race to be disqualified after crossing the line first
Louisville — Country House was declared the winner of the 145th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on Saturday when Maximum Security became the first horse in the history of the race to be disqualified after crossing the line first. Country House’s team raised an objection to Maximum Security’s win, saying the 9-2 favourite’s wide turn heading into the stretch impeded other horses on the sloppy track in rainy Louisville. After a review, officials found Maximum Security was guilty of a contact foul and awarded the win to the William Mott-trained Country House. Code of Honor was bumped up to second and Tacitus third. “No words can describe this. It’s amazing,” Country House jockey Favien Prat said after learning he had won his first Kentucky Derby. “I really lost my momentum around the turn,” he said of Maximum Security’s foul, which came when the colt veered from the rail just as several horses were gaining ground on the leader. The result spelled heartbreak for Maximum Security train...
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