The Hall of Claim: former claimer wins 148th Kentucky Derby? That's Rich! (Strike)
The story of Rich Strike, this racing generation's Rocky Balboa
Quick trivia question: name a horse whose only 2 career wins where a maiden claiming race…and the Kentucky Derby. That would be Rich Strike, one of many modern racing legends whose name certainly fits.
How it started: September 17, 2021, at Churchill Downs (Claimed for $30,000 by trainer Eric Reed for RED TR-Racing). Rich Strike debuted a month earlier in a maiden special weight (MSW) race at Ellis Park. He finished 10th in that race. Proving that there’s more than one way to scout claiming horses. And as they say in the industry I spent decades in (investing), “past performance is not a guarantee of future results.”
How its going: Rich Strike will forever be etched in racing history after winning the Kentucky Derby as an 80-1 “very” long shot in 2022. And will forever make it so that I cannot see Sonny Leon’s name in a current entry and not immediately think back to that magical moment.
Here’s How It Happened
The Humble Beginnings: Bred by Calumet Farm and trained initially by Joe Sharp, after that rough debut on turf, Calumet dropped him into a $30,000 maiden claiming race on dirt at Churchill Downs in September 2021.
The Turning Point: Trainer Eric Reed and owner Rick Dawson saw past his turf debut, noting his strong dirt workouts. They dropped a $30,000 claim slip and won a 2-way shake. Rich Strike romped by more than 17 lengths that afternoon—the best $30,000 Reed ever spent.
The Historic Ascent: After grinding through the 3-year-old prep trail at Turfway Park, Rich Strike drew into the 2022 Kentucky Derby as an last-minute eligible scratch on Friday morning. Starting from post 20 at astronomical 80-1 odds, jockey Sonny Leon wove through a suicidal pace to pull off the second-biggest upset in Derby history. Here’s the replay:
The Legacy: Rich Strike became the first horse claimed out of a maiden claiming race to ever win the Kentucky Derby, generating over $2.5 million in total purse earnings from a $30,000 claim box slip.
As you can see above, Rich Strike’s career is about as much of a “bottom line” story as we’ll see in this sport. Did he have a long successful career, filled with stakes wins? No. Did he provide an amazing return on that claiming investment? Of course.
This is a bottom line business. Translation: if you reach the winners’s circle in the biggest race of the year, the rest is all details, eh?
That’s why Rich Strike is an easy call for entry into our Hall of Claim!