Running Through Arkansas: Arkansas’ Impact on the Kentucky Derby

Apr 29, 2024 Sara Dacus/TwinSpires.com

Arkansas doesn’t have a professional baseball, basketball, or football team. But the state is major league in one sport: thoroughbred horse racing. Runners who have prepped at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs have made a major impact on the Kentucky Derby (G1) throughout the years. Seven winners used the Arkansas Derby (G1) as their final prep: Sunny’s Halo (1983), Lil E. Tee (1992), Grindstone (1996), Super Saver (2010), Smarty Jones (2004), American Pharoah (2015), and Country House (2019).

The Arkansas Derby has been one of the elite races offering 100 qualifying points to the winner since the inception of the Road to the Kentucky Derby in 2013. This virtually assures the horse a place in the starting gate on the first Saturday in May. This year, the $1.5 million purse made it the richest prep race in the country.

Here’s a look at a few of the triumphs on the Arkansas Road to the Derby.

In 1983, Sunny’s Halo became the first horse to win the Arkansas Derby/Kentucky Derby double. His dam was Mostly Sunny, and Canadian owner David Foster decided to breed her to Halo when he read that the Queen of England was sending a mare to him. Sunny’s Halo developed shin splints at the end of his 2-year-old campaign, and trainer David Cross thought the Oaklawn surface would be right for him. Cross was correct: Sunny’s Halo opened his sophomore season with daylight scores in the Rebel H. and Arkansas Derby. At Churchill Downs, he captured the Derby by two lengths, and a rainstorm hit just after he crossed the finish line. Sunny’s Halo became the first 3-year-old in North America to earn more than $1 million in a single season. He was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1986, and he is one of six Kentucky Derby winners buried at the Kentucky Derby Museum next to Churchill.

W.C. “Cal” Partee of Magnolia, Ark., purchased Lil E. Tee after the colt dominated his second start by 11 1/2 lengths. Pat Day, the winningest jockey at Churchill Downs and Keeneland, became his rider. In nine attempts, Day had not won the Kentucky Derby. Lil E. Tee was consistent up to the Run for the Roses. He hit the board in each of his races, including a second in the Arkansas Derby. However, he was under the radar during Kentucky Derby week. French shipper Arazi, entering off of an eight-win streak, was the heavy favorite. But Lil E. Tee rallied to a 16-1 upset, also beating Casual Lies, trained by Shelley Riley, the first female trainer to finish in the money at the Kentucky Derby; and Dance Floor, a colt owned by rapper MC Hammer. Day raised his eyes and hands toward the sky as he gave thanks to God. A little over 25 years later, Churchill unveiled a statue of him inspired by this moment.

Grindstone eked out one of the closest wins in Derby history: he won by a nose. He prepped with a win in the 1996 Louisiana Derby (G3) followed by a wide trip in the Arkansas Derby, where he finished second by a neck. The Run for the Roses was his last race: a knee injury ended his career. He is one of four Kentucky Derby winners conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who saddles Just Steel in this year.

In 2004, Oaklawn celebrated its 100th anniversary, and track owner Charles Cella offered a $5 million Oaklawn Centennial Bonus to any horse who could win the Rebel S., Arkansas Derby, and Kentucky Derby. Smarty Jones was up to the challenge, sweeping all three races. He then astounded in the Preakness (G1), winning by 11 1/2 lengths. No horse had won the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978, and racing’s hopes were high. In the Belmont (G1), Smarty Jones was a contender throughout the race, but Birdstone overtook him in the deep stretch, and the track went silent. It was Smarty’s only loss in nine career starts. After the race, he suffered an injury and did not race again. In 2008, Oaklawn established the Smarty Jones S. It is now the first of Oaklawn’s four preps on the Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Super Saver made a late charge to finish second in the 2010 Arkansas Derby, coming up short by a neck. In the Run for the Roses three weeks later, jockey Calvin Borel demonstrated his signature move, riding up the rail and taking the lead in the stretch to win by 2 1/2 lengths. It was trainer Todd Pletcher’s first Kentucky Derby win, and Borel became the first jockey to win the Derby three times in a four-year span.

American Pharoah snapped the 37-year Triple Crown drought, and his springboard was Oaklawn. The first two races of that storied sophomore season were in Hot Springs. In the Rebel (G2), he handled shipping, a long layoff, a misplaced right front shoe, and a sloppy track with ease, winning by 6 1/4 lengths. Almost a month later, American Pharoah turned out another impressive performance in the Arkansas Derby, cruising to an eight-length victory. Today, a bronze American Pharoah statue stands at the main entrance of Oaklawn.

Who will be the next Oaklawn prepper to wear the roses? This year, Catching Freedom, Just Steel, and Mystik Dan come to Churchill with at least one Arkansas race on their resumes. Catching Freedom, trained by Louisville native Brad Cox, won the Smarty Jones and the Louisiana Derby. Just Steel finished second in the Arkansas Derby and will be ridden by Keith Asmussen, son of Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen. Mystik Dan won Oaklawn’s Southwest (G3) and was third in the Arkansas Derby.