Angel of Empire jockey, trainer and owner: What to know about Kentucky Derby 2023 horse
Angel of Empire is one of 20 horses expected to enter the Kentucky Derby on May 6 at Churchill Downs.
Spots for the Kentucky Derby are earned by gaining points through a series of prep races that began last September.
The post-position draw for the Kentucky Derby is set for Monday, May 1. Post time for the Kentucky Derby is set for 6:57 p.m. on Saturday, May 6.
Angel of Empire will enter the Kentucky Derby off a victory in the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby on April 1 at Oaklawn Park. He currently ranks third on the Kentucky Derby points leaderboard with 154.
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Angel of Empire
Color: Bay
Bred in: Pennsylvania
Sire: Classic Empire
Dam: Armony’s Angel, by To Honor and Serve
Price tag: $70,000 at 2021 Keeneland September Yearling Sale
Owner: Albaugh Family Stables (Dennis Albaugh), 0 for 3 in Derby. Best finish was seventh with Brody’s Cause in 2016.
Trainer: Brad Cox, 1 for 5 in Derby. Won with Mandaloun in 2021.
Jockey: Flavien Prat, 1 for 5 in Derby. Won with Country House in 2019.
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Record: 4-1-0 in six starts
Career earnings: $1,069,375
Road to the Kentucky Derby points: 154 (No. 3)
Last race: Won Grade 1 Arkansas Derby by 4 ¼ lengths over King Russell on April 1 at Oaklawn Park
Running style: Middle of the pack
Notes: Both Cox and Prat got their Kentucky Derby victories after disqualifications. Cox won with Mandaloun in 2021 after Medina Spirit was disqualified because of a drug violation. Prat won with Country House in 2019 after Maximum Security was disqualified for interference. … Angel of Empire will try to become the third Pennsylvania-bred to win the Kentucky Derby. The others are Lil E. Tee (1992) and Smarty Jones (2004). … Angel of Empire got his racing start at Horseshoe Indianapolis, winning there twice as a 2-year-old. He won the Grade 2 Risen Star on Feb. 18 at Fair Grounds before his Arkansas Derby score.
What they’re saying: “Just watching him in the paddock, I was telling (Albaugh racing manager Jason Loutsch), ‘He’s a cool, calm horse,’” Cox said after the Arkansas Derby. “If there is anybody who can handle 150,000 people (at the Kentucky Derby), it would be this horse. And then the way he presented himself. Once he was tacked up, he was out in the infield, kind of got on his toes but didn’t get hot. It was good energy.”
Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @KentuckyDerbyCJ.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky Derby 2023 horse Angel of Empire: Trainer, owners and jockey
