Just hours ago, Sovereignty sprinted into the history books by winning the 151st Kentucky Derby. Defeating 18 challengers on a soggy Churchill Downs ground wasn’t an easy task, but the 3-year-old thoroughbred proved to be up for the task. However, while the Godolphin LLC-owned horse triumphed, Journalism was left astonished.
With 3-1 odds, Journalism was the favorite to win the 2025 Kentucky Derby, and with Bob Baffert scratching out Rodriguez, it looked like an even greater an opportunity. However, Sovereignty put forth an incredible performance to spoil the day for this year’s Santa Anita Derby winner. But the second-place finisher’s jockey, Umberto Rispoli, wasn’t happy about the conditions.
A post on X by FanDuel Racing from May 3 shared the two-time Italian champion jockey’s reactions after the Kentucky Derby came to an exciting end. A dusty Rispoli told Scott Hazelton, “Tough beat, Scott. Really tough beat. I think I had a good trip before the turn, at the start it was a so-so, he was a little bit upset with the mud in his face, he was very surprised after the summer heat,” he went on to explain why even Journalism was caught off guard by the wet conditions at the Kentucky Derby.
In the first half of the race, though, it was all Citizen Bull. The Bob Baffert-trained horse tore from the gates and immediately jumped ahead. However, both Sovereignty and Journalism took off from the middle of the pack and made the second half of the Kentucky Derby essentially a two-horse show. “I started to pull him up and make my run because I have a whole ton of horses ahead of me,” recalled the 36-year-old jockey. “Look, I think you know it’s a lot of a question mark when those things happen like that Scott. Because you know the track is like that, you’ve never been on this track,” he said.
“A really tough beat.”
A disappointed @umbyrispoli talks to @ScottFDTV after his second place finish aboard JOURNALISM in the $5 million Kentucky Derby (G1) pic.twitter.com/2C4555i4bz
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) May 3, 2025
And yet, looking at how Sovereignty put forward a stunning display of speed and strategy, Rispoli had to nod his hat at the Derby-winning horse and its trainer, Bill Mott. “I have to give credit to Mr. Mott and everybody. They win by a couple of lengths. So on the mud today, [he] was the best horse definitely. I would, you know, just have to swallow the pill better. I would fight him on the better ground,” Umberto said, underscoring that his prerogative on the tracks being unsuitable for racing takes nothing away from the Kentucky Derby-winning trainer.
With Rodriguez out, Journalism entered the race as the favorite to win the 151st Kentucky Derby. However, by the end of the 1 1/4 mile race, Sovereignty once again sealed its reputation as a closer. But Rispoli couldn’t be prouder of the Michael McCarthy-owned thoroughbred he rode into second place. “He was brave, he fought hard, he fought really hard,” the jockey said about Journalism.
But while the Journalism camp was disappointed with the results, it was a whole different kind of heartbreak for horse racing’s poster boy.
The Kentucky Derby wasn’t quite the comeback for the CDI legend
After serving a 3-year suspension, iconic trainer Bob Baffert finally returned to Churchill Downs. This was the 72-year-old’s first appearance at CDI since Medina Spirit’s 2021 Kentucky Derby title was revoked following the horse’s positive post-race drug test. But the rough patch was over, and ahead of the Kentucky Derby, Baffert was all about looking ahead with optimism.
“As a horse trainer, what you learn is that you can’t, you know, it’s not good to look back at what’s already happened. You need to stay focused on what’s in front of you at all times,” the celebrity trainer told The Associated Press. Baffert also noted that he was looking forward to having fun at Saturday’s race. However, it turned out to be anything but.
Just days before the Derby race, Bob announced that Rodriguez had picked up a foot injury and would be scratched from the Kentucky event. “You have to be perfect if you’re going to win the Derby. You got to be 100% perfect,” he said, explaining why the hard call had to be made in light of the horse’s condition. With the 2024 Wood Memorial horse out, all of Baffert’s hopes relied on Citizen Bull, who entered the race with 20-1 odds. But the thoroughbred ultimately crossed the finishing line in 6th place, dampening all of Bob’s hopes of making a statement on his return.
But could his story also be different, like Rispoli’s? Did the wet conditions also come into play for the veteran trainer? Tell us your thoughts in a comment!
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