The 150th Kentucky Derby (G1) is Saturday, May 4, at Churchill Downs, offering a record $5 million purse. The field is limited to 20 starters based on Derby qualifying points from dozens of prep races.
He made his connections and bettors nervous with antics that delayed the Blue Grass Stakes for a few minutes. There were no anxious moments after that as Sierra Leone uncorked his usual surge from far back and solidified his status as one of the Derby favorites.
The son of hot young sire Gun Runner drew off by 1½ lengths and is a nose away from being 4-for-4 lifetime.
“He has so much ability and does things so easily,” jockey Tyler Gaffalione said. “We haven’t even gotten close to the bottom of him yet.”
Gaffalione took the Preakness Stakes (War of Will, 2019), and trainer Chad Brown scored with Cloud Computing (2017) and Early Voting (2022). Neither has won the Derby, in which Brown ran second with Good Magic in 2018 and third with Zandon in 2022. They’ve never gone to Churchill Downs with a contender this good.
“This horse is just ahead of them, the way he’s marching into the Derby,” Brown said after the Blue Grass. “I mean, look, he’s been a star since he’s been born.”
He cost $2.3 million as a yearling, which could prove to be a bargain, but there are two caveats about Sierra Leone. As a deep closer, traffic could be a problem in a 20-horse field. And if he got antsy at Keeneland, how will he handle the wall of noise from 100,000-plus fans on the first Saturday in May?
Gaffalione blamed Sierra Leone’s behavior on being the last to load into the outside post near the crowd. It could happen again, but if he can stay calm May 4, he certainly can win.
Watch Sierra Leone work this morning at Keeneland → pic.twitter.com/2A7i1zpJGY
— Keeneland Racing (@keenelandracing) April 20, 2024
Betting advice: If you got 7-1 on him in the final Derby Future Wager, good for you, because you’ll be lucky to get half those odds at post time. He’s sure to handle 1¼ miles and is a major threat to win.
Post position: 2
Odds: 3/1
Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione
Trainer: Chad Brown
Owner: Peter Brant, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg and Brook T. Smith
Career record: 4-3-1-0
Career earnings: $918,000
Most recent race: Blue Grass Stakes, April 6, (1st)
Top Equibase speed figure: 107
Pedigree: Gun Runner-Heavenly Love, by Malibu Moon
Color: Dark bay or brown
Running style: Deep closer
Notes: Sierra Leone would have been a much shorter price in the final Derby Future Wager if the pool hadn’t closed two hours before the Blue Grass … Gaffalione, a 29-year-old native of Florida, is the son and grandson of jockeys. He’s the reigning king at Churchill Downs, where he’s won 11 meet titles since 2018.
