1 of 3 | Jockey Jose Ortiz riding Golden Tempo (L) wins the 152nd running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on Saturday in Louisville, Ky. Renegade (C) ridden by jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. finished second and 70-1 long shot Ocelli (R) ridden by jockey Joseph Ramos placed third. Photo by Pat Benic/UPI | License Photo
May 2 (UPI) — Golden Tempo, a 23-1 longshot, came from last of 18, circled the field and won Saturday’s 152nd Kentucky Derby in a photo finish, making Cherie DeVaux the first female trainer to win the Run for the Roses.
Jockey Jose Ortiz also won his first Kentucky Derby, and did it by narrowly getting the better of his brother, Irad Ortiz Jr., who settled for second on Arkansas Derby winner Renegade.
With longshot Ocelli running up for third, the only mildly well-backed top finisher was Florida Derby third Chief Wallaby, who reported fourth. The parade of longshots produced boxcar mutuel payoffs including a return of $11,250.78 for a winning $1 trifecta ticket.
“I don’t have any words,” an emotional DeVaux said of her historic achievement while waiting for Golden Tempo to return to the winner’s circle. “I’m so happy for Golden Tempo.”
A son of Curlin, Golden Tempo was bred by his owners, Phipps Stable and St. Elias Stables. He won his first two career starts at Fair Grounds in New Orleans, including the Grade III Lecomte, and then finished third in the Grade II Risen Star Stakes and Grade II Louisiana Derby, amassing enough points to make it into the Kentucky Derby.
He has been a come-from-behind runner throughout, a running style that played to his outside draw, originally No. 19 before a slew of scratches cut the Derby field to 18. But he had never been as far behind as he was Saturday. Running down the backstretch, he was so far back he for a time was out of the wide camera angle.
Ortiz started to urge him approaching the turn and he quickly picked up his pace. Exiting the turn, he was still well back and, at the 3/16th pole, he altered course outside of tiring rivals and hit another gear to reach contention.
Renegade, running to his inside, also had momentum but fell just short of winning the battle of brothers.
Ortiz said he never imagined he would get his first Derby win at the expense of his sibling.
“Not really, no. I mean, I want him to win the Derby. I know it’s his dream, as well. But, you know, it happened that way and it should be obvious he rode a very good race. A very nice horse. But it was my year, my day, Golden Tempo’s day.
Jose Ortiz also won Friday’s Kentucky Oaks, a rare double.
Daisy Phipps Pulito, daughter of the legendary Ogden Mills Phipps and racing manager for the stable, said Golden Tempo’s last-to-first tactics were no surprise.
“He ran the race exactly as we thought he was going to run.,” she said. “He broke and then kind of ducked back and Jose did a phenomenal job of getting him a decent position. We knew he was going to have one run and he had the run we needed today.”
Pulito said the owners entrusted Golden Tempo to DeVaux and found it “life changing” to win the Kentucky Derby with her.
“She’s a phenomenal horsewoman. I trust her with everything I have. … It’s just been a joy,” she said..
Asked what prompted her to enter the training ranks, DeVaux credited her husband, David Ingordo, one of the country’s premier bloodstock agents.
“In the summer of 2017, I was kind of at a crossroads in life, and he told me that I owed it to myself to at least try. He had the faith in me and he saw what I didn’t see and believed it.
The obvious next question is plans for Golden Tempo going forward, including whether he will progress to the second jewel of the Triple Crown, the May 16 Preakness Stakes, being run this year at Laurel Race Course while Pimlico is being rebuilt.
“I don’t know yet, Pulito said. “We’ll have to talk to Cherie and see how he comes out of the race. We’ll discuss that.”
For a brief few seconds, it appeared the 152nd running of America’s most famous race might be overwhelmed by foreigners.
Nearing the end of the backstretch run, Six Speed, winner of the Group 3 UAE 2000 Guineas in Dubai, was on the lead and winging. Danon Bourbon, winner of the “Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby,” was second and Wonder Dean, winner of the Group 2 UAE Derby and the “Euro/Mideast Road to the Kentucky Derby” was fourth, with only Grade I Santa Anita Derby winner So Happy in the mix. None was around at the finish.
The Derby was beset by a string of defections from the field originally drawn a week before the race. With the scratch of Florida Derby runner-up The Puma on Saturday morning, Churchill Downs ran out of “also eligible” horses, cutting the field to 19.
Then, as the horses were being loaded into the 20-stall starting gate, they were backed out and Great White, originally the first of the also eligibles,” was scratched, leaving 18 to contest the race.
Jockey Jose Ortiz, aboard horse Golden Tempo, celebrates after winning the 2026 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on May 2, 2026. Photo by John Sommers II/UPI | License Photo
