Days After Kentucky Derby Favorite’s Famous Disqualification, His Owner Offered $20,000,000 to Rivals Once

The countdown has started for ‘The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports’, as horse racing enthusiasts gear up for the Kentucky Derby this Saturday i.e., on 6th May. The spectators at Churchill Downs will witness the elite horses run for the honor of a garland made up of 460 roses, as they gulp the mint julep this weekend. But back in 2019, Derby’s final outcome left spectators baffled as the horse that first crossed the finish line didn’t win the race. 

Maximum Security went down the history books as the first horse to be disqualified in the Kentucky Derby after steering away from its path during the race. Country House, the next one to finish the race was declared as the winner of ‘The Run for the Roses’. Devastated by the ruling, Gary West who owned the unfortunate horse proposed a Derby rematch challenge for a massive$ 20 million. 

The story of the 2019 Kentucky Derby rematch

West proposed a rematch to the top contenders namely Country House, War of Will, Long Range Toddy, and Bodexpress for $ 5 million each. And he kept the rules simple, the rematch contenders just need to beat his horse, Maximum Security, by the year’s end. 

The owner of the 2019 Derby favorite believed that he possessed the best colt in the country that year. ” I firmly believe I have the best 3-year-old in the country and I’m willing to put my money where my mouth is, ” West said to CBS News in 2019. 

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If Maximum Security beat all his contenders, then West had to be paid $5 million from each of the owners of the competing horses. He proposed that the money he would win will go to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. Even if the challenge could not be taken up by any of the four horses, he would contribute 10% of earnings from future lifetime races of Maximum Security. 

Where’s Maximum Security Now?

Though the Derby rematch never occurred, Maximum Security went on to win the richest horse race in the world after its unpredictable failure in the 2019 Kentucky Derby. In 2020, the 4-year-old was led toward the final grease on the King Abdulaziz Racetrack by the jockey Luis Saez as the duo claimed the $10M Saudi Cup in Riyadh.

A month after, Gary West fired the trainer of the horse, Jason Servis, due to his involvement in doping racehorses he trained for various competitions including Maximum Security. The legendary horse, which is remembered by its fans as the Derby Favorite, retired in 2020. Do you sympathize with Maximum Security for its loss in the Kentucky Derby, 2019?

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