Hall of Fame trainer Lukas, four-time Kentucky Derby winner, dies at 89
Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who saddled four Kentucky Derby winners among his 15 winners of US Triple Crown races, has died at he age of 89, his family said Sunday.
In a statement released through Churchill Downs, the family said Lukas died at home on Saturday night, a week after an infection had sent him to hospital and he decided not to pursue aggressive treatment.
Advertisement
"We are deeply grateful for the outpouring of love, prayers and support from all corners of the racing community -- from racetracks across the country to lifelong friends and respected rivals, and from fans who never missed a post parade when 'Lukas' was listed in the program," the family said.
Lukas was one of the most accomplished trainers in US racing history. His 15 Triple Crown victories are second only to Bob Baffert's 17 and he is tied with Ireland's Aidan O'Brien for most Breeders' Cup wins for a trainer with 20.
He saddled his most recent Triple Crown race winner last year with Seize the Grey in the Preakness Stakes -- his seventh Preakness triumph.
"Today we lost one of the great champions of Churchill Downs and one of the most significant figures in Thoroughbred racing over the last 50 years," Bill Carstanjen, chief executive of Churchill Downs Incorporated, said in a statement.
Advertisement
"We will miss his humor, his wisdom and his unmatched capacity to thrill the fans with the performances of his horses on our sport's biggest days."
The Breeders' Cup issued a statement hailing Lukas's innovative training approach and a legacy that "continues through the many horsemen who came up under his astute guidance before finding tremendous success on their own.
"The dedication, discipline, passion, and insight with which he ran his operation will serve as an inspiration for many generations."
National Thoroughbred Racing Association president Tom Rooney said it was "hard to imagine" racing without Lukas.
Advertisement
"His horsemanship reshaped the sport," Rooney said. "If there's a Mount Rushmore of trainers, D. Wayne Lukas is on it."
Churchill Downs had confirmed last week that the horses in Lukas's care had been transferred to veteran assistant Sebastian "Bas" Nicholl.
In a career spanning six decades, Lukas amassed 4,967 documented Thoroughbred wins. He trained 26 Eclipse Award winners, including three that were named Horse of the Year.
bb/js
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
High school flag football: Wednesday and Thursday's results
WEDNESDAY'S RESULTS SOUTHERN SECTION Aliso Niguel 50, Corona 0 Anaheim 37, Garden Grove 6 Banning 43, Cathedral City 6 Beckman 26, Segerstrom 0 Bellflower 7, St. Paul 0 Bishop Amat 13, Bonita 6 Buena 38, Calabasas 6 Burbank Burroughs 18, Valencia 12 Chino 32, Los Altos 0 Corona Centennial 25, Hillcrest 18 Crean Lutheran 32, Capistrano Valley 0 Desert Hot Springs 20, Xavier Prep 0 Downey 37, Western Christian 6 Edison 72, Rialto 7 El Dorado 25, Marina 0 Estancia 20, Saddleback 7 Fullerton 13, Troy 0 Gahr 54, Long Beach Cabrillo 0 Garey 31, Workman 6 Glenn d. Alhambra, forfeit Hacienda Heights Wilson 25, Alemany 6 Hemet 20, Great Oak 0 Indio 19, Ontario Christian 12 Kennedy 25, Katella 0 La Habra 21, La Serna 19 Lakewood St. Joseph 31, Warren 7 Linfield Christian 12, Roosevelt 0 Long Beach Wilson 6, Norwalk 6 Los Alamitos 40, Mayfair 0 Los Osos 19, Nogales 6 Montclair 24, Fontana 6 Newbury Park 26, Simi Valley 0 Orange Lutheran 34, Woodbridge 0 Patriot 21, Chaffey 6 Placentia Valencia 25, Loara 7 Portola 19, Laguna Hills 6 Rowland 31, Arroyo 0 San Clemente 31, University 0 San Gabriel 34, El Monte 0 Sierra Vista 52, West Covina 20 Sonora 32, Westminster La Quinta 0 South Hills 25, Santa Fe 6 Sunny Hills 8, Villa Park 8 Tesoro 25, Irvine 0 Thousand Oaks 18, Chaminade 2 Whittier 13, Bell Gardens 12 Windward 26, Compton Early College 0 Yorba Linda 13, Ayala 6 INTERSECTIONAL Imperial 43, La Quinta 12 THURSDAY'S RESULTS SOUTHERN SECTION Anaheim Canyon 31, El Dorado 6 Azusa 41, Los Altos 0 Buena 21, Del Sol 0 Camarillo 36, Ventura 31 Corona Del Mar 26, Trabuco Hills 13 Covina 25, Baldwin Park 15 Cypress 20, San Clemente 12 El Toro 12, Santa Ana Foothill 0 Fullerton 13, Crean Lutheran 7 JSerra 45, Corona Santiago 6 Lakewood St. Joseph 27, Long Beach Wilson 0 Montebello 40, Mountain View 0 Knight 12, West Ranch 7 Oak Park 27, Newbury Park 26 Oxnard 49, Channel Islands 0 Placentia Valencia 25, Rosemead 12 Santa Paula 20, Santa Barbara 14 Sonora 30, Fountain Valley 12 San Dimas 54, Keppel 0 Temecula Valley 25, Elsinore 0 Vasquez 12, Quartz Hill 7 Sign up for the L.A. Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Eddie Johnson reveals why Shawn Kemp does not get the respect he deserves: "His production went down because of his inability to understand how to handle himself off the court"
Eddie Johnson reveals why Shawn Kemp does not get the respect he deserves: "His production went down because of his inability to understand how to handle himself off the court" originally appeared on Basketball Network. Shawn Kemp's trajectory in the NBA realm is one of the weirdest. While his prime made the strongest centers fear him, he is largely absent from conversations about the greatest in his position as his career wound down. However, when a young Blake Griffin was drawing comparisons to the 'Reign Man,' solely based on the similarities they shared in dunking and scoring, Eddie Johnson was quick to clarify that Kemp's on-court prowess deserved greater respect. Interestingly, Eddie also acknowledged the primary reason why Kemp fails to get the recognition he deserves is due to his own wrongdoings, which took the focus away from his heroics. Johnson believed young Griffin was nowhere near Kemp's level Selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 draft class, Blake Griffin eventually made his debut in 2010 and immediately impressed everyone. He averaged 22.5 points and 12.1 rebounds in his debut campaign. Furthermore, over his first six seasons, he maintained a scoring average of 21.4 points per game while registering SportsCenter-worthy dunks season after season. Naturally, this prompted widespread comparisons to Kemp, based on their athletic and scoring ability at the rim. However, Johnson dismissed these comparisons outright, emphasizing that Kemp's statistical output fails to fully convey the nightmare he posed for defenders. Having witnessed the fear Kemp's mere presence instilled in opponents, Johnson admitted that the lack of recognition stems from Kemp's repeated off-court troubles, which forced fans and many within the NBA community to view Shawn as nothing more than a problematic figure. "I saw some of the most unbelievable, impossible feats in practice that you ever wanna to see. Every now and then, he would show us on the basketball court. Shawn Kemp was a man-child, came straight out of high school, and Shawn in his career, averaged 14 points… Blake Griffin, six years in the league right now, averaging about 21 points per game," Johnson said. "Now the comparison is kind of distorted because Shawn Kemp was tremendous on the court, but his production went down because of his inability to understand how to handle himself off the court." Kemp's image was significantly hampered during the latter stages When Kemp attained six consecutive All-Star nods and even led the Seattle SuperSonics to the NBA Finals in 1996 as a three-time All-NBA Second Team selectee, many anticipated that he would elevate his game to even greater heights. However, his trajectory took a sharp downturn. During his first season with the Portland Trail Blazers, the six-time All-Star entered a drug rehabilitation program for cocaine abuse. Then, in 2002, he was suspended for violating the NBA's anti-drug policy. Even when he called quits on his playing days in 2005, Shawn was arrested in Washington after police discovered marijuana and cocaine in his possession. Therefore, as Eddie rightly mentioned, Kemp willingly took away the spotlight from his on-court achievements and also tarnished his public image. Who knows, had he focused solely on basketball, he would have ensured a meaningful end to his NBA story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 15, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Amir Coffey signs with Milwaukee Bucks on training camp deal
Amir Coffey deserves an NBA roster spot. He is coming off a career season with the Clippers, averaging 9.7 points a game, shooting 40.9% from 3, playing 24 minutes a night on a 50-win team. However, that was not enough to get Coffey a standard NBA contract. He signed on Thursday with the Milwaukee Bucks, a story broken by Shams Charania of ESPN, but this is a training camp only contract for Coffey, reports Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Milwaukee already has the maximum of 15 players under contract for next season (and the veteran Coffey does not qualify for a two-way contract). Technically, the contract of Andre Jackson Jr. is not fully guaranteed. If the Bucks were willing to eat the $800,000 buyout price, they could let Jackson Jr. go and keep Coffey. It was thought that Jackson and Thanasis Antetokounmpo might battle it out in camp for that final roster spot, now Coffey's name is in that mix. This is a quality pickup for the Bucks — they need depth at the three and Coffey slots right in. It's a little surprising that reuniting with Doc Rivers — his first coach with the Clippers — was the best offer on the table for Coffey, but if the Bucks keep him around, he adds solid regular-season depth to a roster that could use it.
