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The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) announced today that Authentic s stirring triumph in the 146th Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve has been voted the 2020 FanDuel Racing-NTRA Moment of the Year based on the results of 3,403 votes cast via Twitter and an online poll.
The winning moment occurred on September 5, 2020 at 7:05 p.m. ET on a day that saw the Run for the Roses contested without fans at Churchill Downs due to the coronavirus pandemic. Under handling from Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, Authentic defeated heavily favored Tiz the Law in the Kentucky Derby to give Spendthrift Farm its first win in the race under the helm of B. Wayne Hughes. The Kentucky Derby triumph also gave Velazquez his 200th career Grade 1 victory and trainer Bob Baffert a record-tying sixth win in the classic.
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Trainer David Hofmans
It s been a few years since 77-year-old trainer David Hofmans has had a nice young horse in his barn, but that doesn t mean he s forgotten how to handle one.
Big Fish, a 3-year-old California-bred by Mr. Big, was already a stakes winner on the turf before entering the starting gate in last Saturday s $200,000 California Cup Derby, a 1 1/16 mile contest on the dirt course at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif. Despite a challenging trip, the colt pulled off a 1 1/2-length victory with ease.
“I thought he preferred the turf, but since he was a Cal-bred we thought we d take advantage of that,” Hofmans said after the race. “He breezed well over (the dirt), the other day with Juan (Hernandez) and seemed to get over it well. He s just maturing. This horse is just now coming into himself. I think we have a better future going forward.