Mystik Dan Wins Kentucky Derby in Nail-Biting Photo Finish
NOSE TO NOSE
Mystik Dan won the 150th Kentucky Derby on Saturday evening in a dramatic photo finish. Entering the race at 16-1 odds, he crossed the finish line just in front of Sierra Leone, who took second place. Jockey Brian Hernandez, Jr. was astride Mystik Dan for trainer Kenny McPeek, who also boasts a 2020 Preakness Stakes win and a 2002 Belmont Stakes title. The Kentucky victory is a first for both Hernandez and McPeek, who are also the first jockey-trainer duo to win both the Derby and the Kentucky Oaks—which takes place just 24 hours before the Derby—in the same year since 1952, Spectrum News reported. More than 150,000 people were in attendance for the breathtaking race, including Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, cookbook ex-con Martha Stewart, and mother of Beyoncé, Tina Knowles.