American Promise trainer, jockey, owner and more to know about 2025 Kentucky Derby horse
American Promise trainer, jockey, owner and more to know about 2025 Kentucky Derby horse
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Watch Kentucky Derby 2025 contender American Promise train at Churchill Downs
Kentucky Derby 2025 contender American Promise trains at Churchill Downs April 23. Trainer is D. Wayne Lukas. Jockey Nik Jaurez slated to ride.
American Promise will enter the Kentucky Derby off a victory in the Virginia Derby on March 15
American Promise trainer D. Wayne Lukas has won the Kentucky Derby four times, most recently in 1999
American Promise 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.
American Promise will enter the Kentucky Derby off a victory in the Virginia Derby on March 15 at Colonial Downs. He currently ranks 14th on the Kentucky Derby points leaderboard with 55.
Color: Chestnut.
Bred in: Kentucky.
Sire: Justify.
Dam: Tapella, by Tapit.
Price tag: $750,000 at 2023 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
Owner: BC Stables (John Bellinger, Brian Coelho). They're 0 for 1 in the Derby, finishing 17th with Just Steel last year.
Trainer: D. Wayne Lukas. He's 4 for 50 in the Derby, winning with Winning Colors (1988), Thunder Gulch (1995), Grindstone (1996) and Charismatic (1999).
Jockey: Nik Juarez. First Derby.
Record: 2-1-1 in nine starts.
Career earnings: $444,874.
Road to the Kentucky Derby points: 55 (No. 14).
Last race: Won Virginia Derby on March 15 at Colonial Downs by 7 ¾ lengths over Render Judgment.
Running style: Near the pace early.
Notes: American Promise needed six races to break his maiden, finally doing so Dec. 29 at Oaklawn Park. That chase included three races at Churchill Downs, where American Promise finished eighth, second and fourth. He finished off the board in a pair of graded stakes earlier this year — seventh in the Grade 3 Southwest at Oaklawn Park and fifth in the Grade 2 Risen Star at Fair Grounds. … The 89-year-old Lukas had missed the Kentucky Derby every year from 2019-23 but broke the skid last year with Just Steel. … Sons of Justify did not fare well in last year's Kentucky Derby, with Just Steel finishing 17th and Just a Touch finishing 20th in the 20-horse field.
What they're saying: 'He's maturing and doing so well that I think I can train him without subjecting him to another race,' Lukas said of the time off since winning the Virginia Derby. 'You never know how that race is going to go. You think it's going to move him forward, but it isn't a cinch. There are things that can happen.'
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 horse racing: Set for second Kentucky Derby, St. Xavier grad Whit Beckman hopes for better racing luck
Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com. Follow on X @KentuckyDerbyCJ.
This story was updated to add a gallery.
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