Kentucky
The Kentucky Derby keeps proving one thing: Don’t trust the favorite
From Donerail’s 91-1 miracle in 1913 to Rich Strike shocking the world in 2022, the Kentucky Derby has a long history of making believers out of longshot backers. Saturday could be next.
Tori Kelly talks Kentucky Derby performance, Justin Bieber collabs
Tori Kelly speaks exclusively with USA TODAY’s Ralphie Aversa about her preparations to perform the national anthem at this year’s Kentucky Derby.
Entertain This!, USA TODAY
The Kentucky Derby favorite hasn’t won since Justify in 2018. Last year, Sovereignty was at 7-1 odds and rallied from the back of the pack on a sloppy track to run down favorite Journalism. That wasn’t even close to the biggest longshot to win this race.
With Great White going off at 50-1 on Saturday, history’s money is on the longshots. Here is a look at the five biggest upsets the Run for the Roses has ever produced.
Donerail, 1913
ODDS: 91-1
The record has stood for 113 years and might never fall. Donerail walked about three miles on dirt and cobblestone to reach the track that morning. He was stabled at a separate facility that day because Churchill Downs was overcrowded. Owner Thomas P. Hayes was just looking for a piece of the purse, hoping to finish in the top five. Instead, jockey Roscoe Goose kept Donerail off the pace letting the favorites Ten Point and Foundation race out front. In the final stretch, Goose let Donerail loose and he flew past the favorites to win by half a length.
The $2 win ticket paid $184.90. It is still the largest payout in Derby history.
Rich Strike, 2022
ODDS: 80-1
Added to the field as an alternate the day before the race when Ethereal Road was scratched, Rich Strike came in at 80-1 odds. He started outside, post 20, as jockey Sonny Leon moved him into 15th within the first mile. Rich Strike and Leon threaded through traffic to move to the inside rail. From there, they ran down the 4-1 favorite Epicenter to get Rich Strike’s first ever graded-stakes win.
The $2 ticket paid off $132.40.
Country House, 2019
ODDS: 65-1
This might be the most unlikely Derby history in modern history, because he didn’t cross the finish line first. Maximum Security did and then was disqualified. After a 22-minute conference at the end of the race, Maximum Security was stripped of the win when the race’s stewards determined that he had caused a chain-reaction of interference in the stretch. Country House had won just one race in six career starts before claiming the Derby roses.
A $2 ticket on him to win paid out $132.40
Giacomo, 2005
ODDS: 50-1
Owned by music executive Jerry Moss, Giacomo had one career win to his name entering the Derby. He came out slow, sitting near the back of the pack through most of the race and then made a spectacular charge through heavy traffic to win in a three-horse photo finish by half a length. He joined his grandfather, the Hall of Famer Seattle Slew, as a Kentucky Derby winner. The favorite, Bellamy Road finished seventh.
The payout for a $2 win ticket was $102.60.
Mine That Bird, 2009
ODDS: 50-1
While the Derby contender arrived in Louisville by private jets and luxury vans, Mine That Bird traveled more than 1,200 miles in a regular horse trailer hitched to the back of trainer Chip Woolley’s truck. Jockey Calvin Borel, who had won the 2007 Derby on Street Sense, guided Mine That Bird from eight lengths behind at the first turn to the rail. They started picking off horses one by one and by the time NBC announcer Tom Durkin spotted them, Mine That Bird was already three lengths ahead. He went on to win by 6 ¾ lengths, the largest margin of victory in 60 years.
The $2 ticket paid $103.20.
Over the last several recruiting classes, the University of Kentucky Basketball program has come up short in terms of landing the “big fish” in either recruiting or the transfer portal.
But recently, head coach Mark Pope and his staff landed Milan Momcilovic — the top target in the entire transfer portal — from Iowa State to join their team for the upcoming season.
While many people clearly played a role in getting Momcilovic to Kentucky, former Wildcat Tyler Herro clearly had his fingerprints on the move.
Tyler’s dad — Chris — was Momcilovic’s coach back in AAU and (of course) was heavily connected to UK through Tyler back around the COVID years when Momcilovic was being recruited out of high school.
“Tyler reached out to me. Chris (Herro) and my dad are pretty good friends because they used to coach together on the EYB,” Momcilovic said during Thursday’s media scrum. “So, he was calling me, and he was obviously telling me, ‘Go to Kentucky. Go to Kentucky.’ I really like the Herro family. Obviously, I listen to them, but it was my decision at the end of the day.”
Though Kentucky never reached out originally back during his high school recruiting, they did come knocking most recently during this past summer, and with the help of Herro’s encouragement, Momcilovic will represent the Big Blue Nation this fall in Lexington for a chance to try and bring banner No. 9 home to UK.
Can’t love this enough.
No return to college bball for Billy D.
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) – Cub Express Auto Wash will officially open its newest Kentucky location next week.
Located at 2270 Scottsville Rd. in Bowling Green, a ribbon cutting ceremony will be held on Tuesday, July 7, at 11 a.m. It will kick off five days of free car washes for the community.
The Five Days of Free will run from Tuesday, July 7, through Saturday, July 11. Each guest will receive the Ultimate wash, Cub Express’s top-tier wash experience. at no charge.
The public is invited to attend the ribbon cutting on-site at 11:00 a.m. to celebrate the opening alongside the Cub Express team.
Claim Your Free Ultimate Wash
Copyright 2026 WBKO. All rights reserved.
Mark Pope had a real surprise on his 2025-26 roster as true freshman center Malachi Moreno exceeded expectations, stepping into a starting role. Big Blue Nation didn’t expect Moreno to see the floor much once Jayden Quaintance was back on the floor, but JQ never got healthy, and Moreno took over for Brandon Garrison immediately. The freshman seven-footer averaged 7.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game.
This season, many expect a massive leap for Moreno as he could take over as one of the more dominant centers in the SEC. While his name was in the NBA Draft, the stock rose quickly for Moreno, and this gives fans and the staff a ton of confidence that he is going to break out this season.
Another person who believes Moreno is going to break out this season is Jon Rothstein. He made a list of his five top breakout candidates in SEC basketball this season, and Moreno was on this list, joined by Florida’s Isaiah Brown, Alabama’s London Jemison, Tennessee’s Dewayne Brown, and lastly Patton Pinkins from Ole Miss.
I believe Moreno is going to boost his stats from year one to year two in an absolutely massive way. I predict Moreno to score in the ballpark of 13 points per game this season. I expect him to pull down about 9 boards per game. His assists will take a big leap with him running the show, and I am predicting 3.5 dimes per game. Lastly, the shot blocking will be important for Moreno, and I believe he will average about 2.2 blocks per game.
If Moreno is able to put up numbers close to that this year as a sophomore, he is going to, without question, turn himself into a first-round draft pick, which Coach Pope predicted. The big thing for Moreno will be getting more physical down low. At times last season, teams would have a big who played a little bit more physical than Moreno, and he didn’t do well.
If Moreno can get mean down low, he is going to put up some eye-popping numbers this season in Lexington. I believe Moreno will finish this college basketball season as a top ten center in all of college basketball. It is going to be an absolute delight to watch Moreno run the show on offense this season for Pope and the Wildcats.
Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and YouTube for the latest news.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
-
Colorado1 minute agoSuspect arrested after starting vehicle fire in Colorado Springs
-
Connecticut4 minutes agoMotorcyclist seriously injured after crashing into parked, unoccupied vehicle in Meriden
-
Delaware9 minutes agoDelaware Man Killed by Falling Camel
-
Florida16 minutes agoFlorida Supreme Court reverses rule on knock-and-announce evidence
-
Georgia19 minutes agoFBI assigns 260 staffers to Georgia election investigation
-
Idaho19 minutes agoTrump OKs disaster declaration for northern Idaho counties
-
Hawaii22 minutes agoHawaii commemoration of America’s birthday funded on a shoestring – The Garden Island
-
Illinois31 minutes agoFireworks Near Me: July 4th Events Around Chicago Heights For 2026
