Current:Home > StocksBlack trainer Larry Demeritte brings his $11,000 horse to the Kentucky Derby-LoTradeCoin
Black trainer Larry Demeritte brings his $11,000 horse to the Kentucky Derby
View Date:2024-12-23 23:27:28
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — If Larry Demeritte is looking for a positive sign heading into his first Kentucky Derby as a trainer, it’s right where his horse is assigned.
Long-shot West Saratoga is staying in Barn 42 at Churchill Downs, the same location where Seattle Slew was before he won the 1977 Derby and went on to sweep the Triple Crown. It was the first Derby that Demeritte attended.
Now, he is the second Black trainer since 1951 to be saddling a horse in the 150th Derby on Saturday. The other, Hank Allen, finished sixth with Northern Wolf in 1989.
Black trainers dominated the Derby’s early years, winning seven of the first 17 from 1875-1891.
“We’re so grateful to be here and enjoying every single minute,” Demeritte said.
Everything is meaningful to the 74-year-old from the Bahamas since he was diagnosed with cancer in 1996 and underwent chemotherapy. His father was a trainer in the islands and Dermeritte still carries the accent of his home country, where he was leading trainer for two years.
“My motto is, `I don’t buy cheap horses. I buy good horses cheap,’” he said, smiling.
Purchased for $11,000, West Saratoga is the pride of Demeritte’s 11-horse stable at The Thoroughbred Center in nearby Lexington. The colt has earned $460,140.
“He’s getting better with every start,” he said. “I’ve been around a lot of good horses and this horse really matches up to a lot of them.”
The costliest horse in the 20-horse Derby field is morning-line second choice Sierra Leone, purchased for $2.3 million.
It’s the first Derby for owner Harry Veruchi.
“I bought my first horse in 1982, and two weeks later he won at Centennial Race Track in Littleton, Colorado,” Veruchi said. “I thought, this is easy. And now, to be here, who would have thought it? I don’t know anybody who has been in the Kentucky Derby or even anybody who has won a graded stake.”
West Saratoga is named for the street in Littleton where Veruchi grew up. It’s located six blocks from the Centennial track, which closed in 1983.
The only one with any Derby experience in their group is jockey Jesus Castanon. He finished fourth aboard Shackleford in 2011. They set the pace and led at the eighth pole only to be overtaken by eventual winner Animal Kingdom.
“I thought I was going to win it,” Castanon said. “In my mind, I was going crazy.”
Demeritte has run horses on the Derby undercard in past years.
“I’ve been practicing,” he said, his smile exposing the gap in his front teeth. “I used to pray to get to the Derby. I feel like I am blessed with this horse.”
Demeritte has his eyes on the sky for Saturday, when the forecast calls for a 43% chance of rain. The gray colt has never run on a wet track, but his sire did.
Exaggerator was runner-up in the 2016 Derby and went on to win the Preakness and the Haskell. Both of those races were run on sloppy tracks.
“This is truly amazing how we got to this position with this horse,” Demeritte said. “I’m hopeful people will see our story and become interested in this sport because this horse is proving anyone with a dream can make it to the Derby stage.”
___
AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing
veryGood! (39)
Related
- Sister Wives’ Kody Brown Explains His Stance on His Daughter Gwendlyn Brown’s Sexuality
- Biden promised a watchdog for opioid settlement billions, but feds are quiet so far
- Out-of-staters are flocking to places where abortions are easier to get
- Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill reaches settlement following incident at a Miami marina
- Sister Wives’ Kody Brown Explains His Stance on His Daughter Gwendlyn Brown’s Sexuality
- The truth about teens, social media and the mental health crisis
- Missing Titanic sub has less than 40 hours of breathable air left as U.S. Coast Guard search continues
- Today is 2023's Summer Solstice. Here's what to know about the official start of summer
- Man who stole and laundered roughly $1B in bitcoin is sentenced to 5 years in prison
- This shade of gray can add $2,500 to the value of your home
Ranking
- Does your dog have arthritis? A lot of them do. But treatment can be tricky
- Fuzzy Math: How Do You Calculate Emissions From a Storage Tank When The Numbers Don’t Add Up?
- New lawsuit provides most detailed account to date of alleged Northwestern football hazing
- Timeline: The Justice Department's prosecution of the Trump documents case
- Monument erected in Tulsa for victims of 1921 Race Massacre
- In House Bill, Clean Energy on the GOP Chopping Block 13 Times
- Missing Titanic sub has less than 40 hours of breathable air left as U.S. Coast Guard search continues
- It Took This Coal Miner 14 Years to Secure Black Lung Benefits. How Come?
Recommendation
-
Kennesaw State football coach Brian Bohannon steps down after 10 seasons amid first year in FBS
-
Is a 1960 treaty between Pakistan and India killing the mighty Ravi River?
-
Khartoum's hospital system has collapsed after cease-fire fails
-
From Antarctica to the Oceans, Climate Change Damage Is About to Get a Lot Worse, IPCC Warns
-
DWTS’ Ilona Maher and Alan Bersten Have the Best Reaction to Fans Hoping for a Romance
-
Inside the Coal War Games
-
Inside the Coal War Games
-
Unraveling a hidden cause of UTIs — plus how to prevent them