It never rains in Southern California, according to rock singer Albert Hammond, but in Kentucky, it regularly happens any day that ends in “y.”
Although 12 Kentucky Derby horses have run in wet or sloppy conditions, only three have finished first in those races. That may come in handy for Derby 150 on Saturday with a chance of rain in the forecast, according to the National Weather Service.
The last time the Churchill Downs track was muddy or sloppy during the Run for the Roses was in 2019, when Country House won after Maximum Security was disqualified. Post time for Derby 150 is scheduled at 6:57 p.m. Saturday.
Here are the 2024 Derby horses’ best stakes-race wins on either a muddy or sloppy track:
Grade 3 Southwest Stakes
Mystik Dan’s first graded-stakes race ended with a victory on a muddy track Feb. 3 at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He won the 1 1/16-mile race by 8 lengths in 1:43.67, and fellow Derby horse Just Steel placed second.
Grade 2 Remsen Stakes
Dornoch is the only horse to beat Sierra Leone after he won a 1 1/8-mile race Dec. 2 on a muddy Aqueduct track in Queens, New York. Dornoch won by a nose in 1:50.30.
Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes
After losing to Dornoch in his first graded-stakes race, Sierra Leone rebounded two months later by taking first Feb. 17 on a sloppy Fair Grounds track in New Orleans. Sierra Leone ran the 1 1/8 miles in 1:52.13.
Reach Louisville football, women’s basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Which Kentucky Derby horse runs best in the rain? Mudders to watch
