Kentucky Derby 2022 ended in a major upset when Rich Strike beat 80-1 odds, the second-longest in the history of Run for the Roses, and emerged the winner. 

Rich Strike, who won jockey Sonny Leon, and trainer Eric Reed their debut derbies, was sired by Keen Ice, who’s won numerous graded stakes races during his career. The dam is Gold Strike who comes from Smart Strike and is the reason behind the winner’s name. 

While Rich Strike was a long shot in the Churchill Downs race, the steed has experience in his veins. Keen Ice was part of the 2015 derby, where the horse came in seventh. However, Keen Ice won two graded stakes and came in third in the 2016 Breeder’s Cup, fourth in the 2015 Breeder’s Cup, and also held the third spot at 2015’s Belmont Stakes. 

Also Read | Kentucky Derby 2022: Payout for betting on surprise winner Rich Strike

Gold Strike, the dam, has also won one of the two graded stakes that she ran. Smart Strike, her sire, was a multiple graded stakes winner too, clinching victories at two of the three stakes he participated in. 

Bred at Calumet Farm, Reed obtained the horse for Rick Dawson, for $30,000. With this victory, Rich Strike has a shot at the coveted Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing and heads to the Preakness Stakes next, at Baltimore. The race is at the Pimlico Race Course, on May 21. 

Also Read | Kentucky Derby 2022: How do owners choose names of their racehorses?

The steed beat out favourites like Epicenter and Zandon to claim the top spot, and covered the one and one-fourth miles on a fast track in two minutes, two seconds, and sixty-one milliseconds. Rich Strike finished three-quarters of a length ahead of second-placed Epicenter. With a saddle number 21, Rich Strike broke from the twentieth position, after the horse was included in the list on Friday upon Ethereal Road’s name being removed. 

The Kentucky Derby victory won Rich Strike $1.86 million.