The 1991 Kentucky Derby was the 117th running of the Kentucky Derby. The race took place on May 4, 1991, with 135,554 people in attendance.

The Road to the 1991 Kentucky Derby

Heading into the Derby, it was seen as a wide-open race with multiple horses having a chance at victory.

Fly So Free Fly So Free (March 3, 1988 – September 21, 2003) was an American Thoroughbred Champion racehorse. A grandson of U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee Damascus, he was owned by New York City Broadway theatre producer and music publishing company ...

had an impressive resume coming into the race. He won the Grade-3 Tremont Breeders' Cup Stakes, the Grade-1 Champagne Stakes, the Grade-1

Breeders' Cup Juvenile The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup W ...

, the Grade-2 Hutcheson Stakes, the Grade-2 Fountain of Youth Stakes and the Grade-1

Florida Derby The Florida Derby is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses held annually at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Since 2005, it has been run five weeks before the Kentucky Derby, which is held on the first Sat ...

. Through these wins, he had already defeated most of the field in various races. Best Pal also had an impressive resume with multiple wins at the Grade-3 1990

Balboa Stakes The Best Pal Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds over a distance of six furlongs on the dirt track scheduled annually in August at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The event currently carries a purse o ...

, the Grade-2

Del Mar Futurity The Del Mar Futurity is a seven-furlong American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A Grade I event since 2007, the race is open to two-year-old horses and offers a purse of $300,000. In 1971, it w ...

, the Grade-1 Norfolk Stakes and the Grade-1

Hollywood Futurity The Los Alamitos Futurity is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds run over a distance distance of one and one sixteenth miles ( furlongs) on the dirt held annually in early December at Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, ...

. He also finished ahead of Sea Cadet at the 1991

Santa Anita Derby The Santa Anita Derby is an American Grade 1 thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run each April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is currently run at a distance of miles on the dirt and carries a purse of $400,000. It is one ...

. Hansel had won the Grade-3 July 1990 Tremont Breeders' Cup Stakes, the Grade-2 September 1990 Arlington-Washington Futurity Stakes, the March 1991 Grade-2 Jim Beam Stakes(where he defeated Wilder Than Ever) and the April 1991 Grade-2

Lexington Stakes The Lexington Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses at a distance of one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt run annually in April during at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky during their s ...

. However, he was defeated soundly twice by

. Strike the Gold had won the April 1991

Blue Grass Stakes The Blue Grass Stakes, currently the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes due to sponsorship by the Toyota Motor Corporation, is a horse race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually in April at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky. The race is ru ...

defeating favorite

by a half-length after finishing 2nd to

at the 1991

. Green Alligator captured the April 1991 Grade-3 California Derby in his only stakes win. Quintana was victorious at the March 1991 Grade-3

Rebel Stakes The Rebel Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses at a distance of one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt run annually in March, at Oaklawn Park Race Track in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The event currently off ...

winning over fellow 1991 Kentucky Derby competitor, Corporate Report. Alydavid won the Grade-3 April 1991

Derby Trial Stakes The Pat Day Mile Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on dirt over a distance of one mile scheduled on Kentucky Derby Day at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The current purse is $500,000. History ...

and was a half-brother of Strike the Gold. Sea Cadet won the January 1991

El Camino Real Derby The El Camino Real Derby is a Listed American Thoroughbred horse race held in February at Golden Gate Fields in Albany, California. The race is open to three-year-olds willing to race one and one-eighth miles (9 furlongs) on Tapeta, a synthetic ra ...

and the March 1991 San Felipe Stakes, placing multiple positions ahead of Green Alligator. Mane Minister picked up smaller victories in the January 1991 listed Santa Catalina Stakes and the 1991 listed Pirate Cove Stakes. Paulrus, Another Review, Corporate Report, Happy Jazz Band, Forty Something, Lost Mountain, Subordinated Debt and Wilder Than Ever had never won a stakes race and were seen as wildcards. Dinard won the Grade-2 1991

San Rafael Stakes The San Rafael Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run at Santa Anita Park, located in Arcadia, California. The race was a Grade III event with a purse of $150,000 and was open to three-year-olds willing to race one mile (8 furlongs) ...

. He defeated Best Pal in what was called "the single most compelling performance of the year" in the Grade-1 1991

. He was considered an early favorite for the Kentucky Derby, but suffered a foreleg injury and was declared out. Olympio, winner of the 1991

Arkansas Derby The Arkansas Derby is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. In 200 ...

, who had traded wins with Dinard, was also seen as a possible candidate for the Kentucky Derby. However, his owners decided to skip the race for the

1991 Preakness Stakes The 1991 Preakness Stakes was the 116th running of the Preakness Stakes thoroughbred horse race. The race took place on May 18, 1991, and was televised in the United States on the ABC television network. Hansel, who was jockeyed by Jerry Bailey ...

, where he finished 7th. Cahill Road was also seen as a contender after winning the April 1991

Wood Memorial Stakes The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memorial ...

, but injured his left front leg in the victory and was retired.

Full results

* Winning Breeder: Calumet Farm; (KY)

Payout

* $2

Exacta Parimutuel betting or pool betting is a betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and the "house-take" or "vigorish" are deducted, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all winnin ...

: (4-10) Paid $73.40

References

{{Kentucky Derby

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

Kentucky Derby

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

Kentucky Derby

The Road to the 1991 Kentucky Derby

Full results

Payout

See also

References