The 2024 Kentucky Derby field includes the sons of Derby winners, other top stallions

jon hale

Tue, Apr 30, 2024, 6:30 AM·6 min read

Among the plethora of factors to consider when making a Kentucky Derby bet are the bloodlines of the horses.

Handicappers will consider a horse’s sire to evaluate how the horse might run on different surfaces and what race length suits it best among other factors. To help you make your 2024 Kentucky Derby pick, here is a look at the sire of each horse in the race.

Among the group are two former Kentucky Derby winners, including one Triple Crown champion. Two horses have sired multiple contenders in this year’s race.

Blame

Kentucky Derby horses: Epic Ride (50-1).

Blame, who raced from 2008-10, won nine of 13 career starts — including three Grade 1 races — and never finished out of the money with two seconds and two thirds.

He concluded his career by winning the Breeders’ Cup Classic at 1 1/4 miles at Churchill Downs, handing Hall of Famer Zenyatta her only defeat in 20 career races.

Epic Ride is by far Blame’s most accomplished progeny by career earnings.

Catalina Cruiser

Kentucky Derby horses: Catalytic (30-1).

Catalina Cruiser won six Grade 2 stakes but finished no better than sixth in his two Grade 1 stakes.

Catalina Cruiser’s six wins came between 6 1/2 furlongs and 1 1/16 miles but his sire, Union Rags, won the Belmont Stakes.

City of Light

Kentucky Derby horses: Fierceness (5-2).

Winner of four Grade 1 stakes, including the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Churchill Downs, City of Light earned over $5.6 million in his racing career.

City of Light won three graded stakes of at least 1 mile in distance and finished third in the 1 1/4-mile Grade 1 Gold Cup at Santa Anita.

Constitution

Kentucky Derby horses: Catching Freedom (8-1).

Constitution won two of his four Grade 1 stakes races, including the Florida Derby. Was taken off the Kentucky Derby trail in 2014 due to injury.

Constitution is also the sire of Tiz the Law, who finished second in the 2020 Kentucky Derby and won the Belmont Stakes.

Copano Rickey

Kentucky Derby horses: T O Password (30-1).

A Japanese horse, Copano Rickey won three Grade 1 stakes and finished his racing career with more than $9 million in earnings across 33 starts.

Copano Rickey’s sire, Gold Allure, is the son of 1989 Kentucky Derby winner Sunday Silence.

Exaggerator

Kentucky Derby horses: West Saratoga (50-1).

Exaggerator won the Santa Anita Derby and Preakness and finished second in the 2016 Kentucky Derby.

Exaggerator also sired Skippylongstocking, who finished third in the 2022 Belmont Stakes.

Ghostzapper

Kentucky Derby horses: Stronghold (20-1).

A Breeders’ Cup Classic winner, Ghostzapper won four of five Grade 1 stakes and finished his racing career with more than $3.4 million in earnings.

Ghostzapper has sired 14 Grade 1 stakes winners.

Goldencents

Kentucky Derby horses: Mystik Dan (20-1).

Goldencents twice won the Breeders’ Cup Classic Dirt Mile and the 1 1/8-mile Santa Anita Derby but finished 17th in the Kentucky Derby and fifth in the Preakness.

While Goldencents is best known as a source of speed, he has sired multiple winners of graded stakes of at least 1 1/8 miles.

Good Magic

Kentucky Derby horses: Dornoch (20-1), Society Man (50-1).

Good Magic finished second in the 2018 Kentucky Derby to Triple Crown winner Justify and was the sire of 2023 Kentucky Derby winner Mage.

Good Magic is also the sire of Muth, the Arkansas Derby winner who would probably have been one of the favorites in this year’s Derby if trainer Bob Baffert was not suspended from racing at Churchill Downs.

Gun Runner

Kentucky Derby horses: Sierra Leone (3-1).

The 2017 Horse of the Year, Gun Runner proved adept at going 1 1/4 miles with a win in the Breeders’ Cup Classic and third-place finish in the 2016 Kentucky Derby.

Gun Runner was the sire to 2022 Preakness Stakes winner Early Voting.

Honor Code

Kentucky Derby horses: Honor Marie (20-1).

The 2015 Eclipse Award winner for American Champion Older Dirt Male, Honor Code won two Grade 1 stakes as a 4-year-old.

Honor Code has sired three horses that have won Grade 1 stakes of at least 1 1/8 miles.

Into Mischief

Kentucky Derby horses: Resilience (20-1).

The five-time reigning champion general sire, Into Mischief has already produced two Kentucky Derby winners: Authentic (2020) and Mandaloun (2021).

Only Bold Ruler (eight) has won more general sire titles than Into Mischief since 1878.

Justify

Kentucky Derby horses: Just a Touch (10-1), Just Steel (20-1).

The only Triple Crown winner to retire without being beaten, Justify became the first horse since Apollo in 1882 to win the Kentucky Derby without racing as a 2-year-old.

Verifying finished 16th in the 2023 Kentucky Derby as the first son of Justify to race in the Run for the Roses.

Nyquist

Kentucky Derby horses: Encino (Scratched).

The 2016 Kentucky Derby winner, Nyquist won five Grade 1 races on dirt during his racing career.

Nyquist has already sired three Grade 1 stakes winners.

Oscar Performance

Kentucky Derby horses: Endlessly (30-1).

All four of Oscar Performance’s Grade 1 stakes wins came on turf.

Oscar Performance did sire Read Carpet Ready, a filly who won the Grade 2 Eight Belles on the dirt at Churchill Downs last year.

Practical Joke

Kentucky Derby horses: Domestic Product (30-1).

Practical Joke won three Grade 1 stakes, but none were longer than 1 mile. He has sired nine Grade 1 winners, but most have performed best as sprinters.

One of Practical Joke’s most successful sons is Practical Move, who won the 2023 Santa Anita Derby at 1 1/4 miles but was scratched from the Kentucky Derby.

Quality Road

Kentucky Derby horses: Track Phantom (20-1).

Winner of four Grade 1 stakes, Quality Road did his best work at 1 1/8 miles or less.

Many of Quality Road’s progeny have carried over that sprinting prowess, but he did sire three Grade 1 winners in races at least 1 1/4 miles, including 2023 Preakness winner National Treasure.