East Avenue trainer, jockey, owner and more to know about 2025 Kentucky Derby horse

USA Today

03-05-2025

East Avenue trainer, jockey, owner and more to know about 2025 Kentucky Derby horse
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Bob Baffert: Kentucky Derby, Triple Crown championships and controversy
Horse racing trainer Bob Baffert has multiple Kentucky Derby wins, two Triple Crown champions, and a career marked by both triumph and controversy.
East Avenue will enter the Kentucky Derby off a runner-up finish in the Blue Grass Stakes on April 8 at Keeneland
East Avenue was the favorite in last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile but finished ninth after stumbling at the start
East Avenue is one of 20 horses expected to enter the 2025 Kentucky Derby on May 3 at Churchill Downs.
Spots for the Run for the Roses are earned by gaining points through a series of Kentucky Derby prep races that began last September.
The post-position draw for the Kentucky Derby is set for Saturday, April 26. Post time for the Kentucky Derby is set for 6:57 p.m. on Saturday, May 3.
East Avenue will enter the Kentucky Derby off a second-place finish in the Grade 1 Blue Grass Stakes on April 8 at Keeneland. He currently ranks 13th on the Kentucky Derby points leaderboard with 60.
Color: Bay.
Bred in: Kentucky.
Sire: Medaglia d'Oro.
Dam: Dance Music, by Ghostzapper.
Price tag: Homebred.
Owner: Godolphin (Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum). Godolphin is 0 for 12 in the Derby, best finish coming with Essential Quality (third) in 2021.
Trainer: Brendan Walsh. He's 0 for 1 in the Derby, finishing ninth with Plus Que Parfait in 2019.
Jockey: Manny Franco. He's 0 for 5 in the Derby, best finish coming with Tiz the Law (second) in 2020.
Record: 2-1-0 in five starts.
Career earnings: $654,395.
Road to the Kentucky Derby points: 60 (No. 13).
Last race: Second in Grade 1 Blue Grass Stakes on April 8 at Keeneland, a nose behind Burnham Square.
Running style: Front-runner.
Notes: East Avenue won his first two starts as a 2-year-old and was the 9-5 favorite in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile last November but stumbled badly at the start and finished ninth. He finished 10th in the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds in his 3-year-old debut before rebounding as the runner-up in the Blue Grass. … All three of East Avenue's in-the-money finishes have come in Kentucky — two at Keeneland and one at Ellis Park. … Medaglia d'Oro, East Avenue's sire, raced in all three Triple Crown races in 2002, finishing fourth in the Kentucky Derby, eighth in the Preakness and second in the Belmont. He went on to win six graded stakes, including the 2002 Travers, and was the runner-up as the favorite in the 2002 and 2003 Breeders' Cup Classics.
What they're saying: 'I loved how he battled,' Walsh said after the Blue Grass. 'He looked down the straight like he was going to fold, and he didn't fold. I think it's a good sign for the future, and I think he's a horse that can still improve.'
Last May, NBC Sports announced a partnership with Churchill Downs to present the Kentucky Derby on NBC and Peacock through 2032.
The extension includes multiplatform rights to the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Oaks and Derby and Oaks Day programming, which will be presented on NBC, Peacock, USA Network and additional NBCU platforms.
You can stream the 2025 Kentucky Derby on Fubo and Peacock.
Post time for the 151st Kentucky Derby is set for 6:57 p.m. on Saturday, May 3.
More Kentucky Derby: Five things to know about 2025 field as draw approaches April 26
Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; [e-mail]. Follow on X @KentuckyDerbyCJ.