What trainers have won the most at the Kentucky Derby? From Jones to Baffert, 5 names to know
Aside from the thoroughbreds themselves, perhaps no part of a Kentucky Derby entry is more noticeable than the trainer. They do the lion's share of the interviews about their competing horse. They receive the close-up shots on national television before and after the Run for the Roses.
There have been countless trainers in the history of the Derby, where success can be hard to come by; only four trainers have won the race four (or more) times.
Here’s a list of five trainers, in alphabetical order, who have defined the Kentucky Derby heading into the 150th running of the race May 4 at Churchill Downs.
Bob Baffert
The most controversial member of this list, Bob Baffert has been banned from Churchill Downs since 2021. And that suspension, which came in the aftermath of Medina Spirit's disqualification after crossing the line first in the 2021 Derby, will continue through the end of this year. Before the DQ, Baffert had made history, becoming the first trainer with seven wins in the Run for the Roses. Back down to six wins (1997, 1998, 2002, 2015, 2018 and 2020), he shares that record with Ben Jones.
While he's been sidelined from the Run for the Roses in the last three editions of the race, the suspension hasn't slowed down Baffert elsewhere, though. He continues to train champion horses. He even added to his Triple Crown tally, winning the Preakness Stakes last year with National Treasure. That victory extended Baffert's record for wins by a trainer in Triple Crown races — now up to 17 — as well as victories at the Preakness; along with 2023, he also won in 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2010, 2015 and 2018.
Baffert has trained a pair of Triple Crown thoroughbreds: American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018.
James Fitzsimmons
Before Baffert came along, James E. Fitzsimmons, who had the nickname "Sunny Jim," was the first (and only) trainer with two Triple Crown horses. He trained Gallant Fox in 1930. Five years later, Fitzsimmons trained Gallant Fox's son, Omaha, to Triple Crown glory as well. Beyond that, Fitzsimmons trained Hall of Famers Granville and Nashua. Fitzsimmons even served as Seabiscuit's first trainer (though the famous colt went on to greater glory with another trainer, Tom Smith). Fitzsimmons won the Derby three times: Gallant Fox and Omaha during their Triple Crown years, with Johnstown joining them in 1939. Fitzsimmons had six victories in the Belmont (1930, 1932, 1935, 1936, 1939 and 1955) and four in the Preakness (1930, 1935, 1955, 1957), giving him 13 Triple Crown wins overall.
Ben Jones
In 1953, one year after his sixth Derby win, Ben Jones retired from training, handing over the reins to his son, Horace A. "Jimmy" Jones, also a Hall of Famer. It took nearly seven decades until another trainer matched the elder Jones' record of success at Churchill Downs: Baffert notched his sixth win in the Run for the Roses in 2020. Jones' last five Derby wins came with horses owned by Calumet Farm: Whirlaway (1941), Pensive (1944), Citation (1948), Ponder (1949) and Hill Gail (1952). His other Derby triumph came with Lawrin — owned by Woolford Farm — in 1938. Whirlaway and Citation went on collect the next two legs of the Triple Crown following their Derby wins.
D. Wayne Lukas
The Hall of Famer has tasted victory in the Derby four times: 1988 (with Winning Colors), 1995 (with Thunder Gulch) 1996 (with Grindstone) and 1999 (with Charismatic). D. Wayne Lukas' Derby entrant this year, Just Steel, will be his 50th starter in the Run for the Roses. But for one of the sport's most iconic trainers, it's been a long absence by his high standards. This year marks the first time since 2018, when Bravazo finished sixth, that Lukas has a horse in the Derby. He has 14 Triple Crown victories. Aside from his four Derby wins, Lukas boasts six Preakness victories (1980, 1985, 1994, 1995, 1999 and 2013) and four first-place finishes in the Belmont (1994, 1995, 1996 and 2000). Lukas' last Triple Crown triumph was the 2013 Preakness, with Oxbow, who upended that year's Derby winner, Orb.
Todd Pletcher
Todd Pletcher has two wins in the Derby, one with Super Saver (in 2010) and another with Always Dreaming (in 2017). He might have been able to add to that tally last year, but it was not to be: Pletcher's horse, Forte, entered the 2023 Derby as the favorite. But on the morning of the race, Forte scratched. But Pletcher has another stellar entrant this year with Fierceness, which won the Florida Deby by 13 ½ lengths at Gulfstream Park in his most recent start. Pletcher already holds the record for most Derby starters by a trainer, with Fierceness in line to be No. 65. A Texan, Pletcher is North America's richest trainer (more than $480 million in earnings) and has six victories in Triple Crown races; along with his two Derby triumphs, he's won the Belmont Stakes four times (2007, 2013, 2017 and 2022).
Honorable mention
Laz Barrera: Before American Pharoah swept the Triple Crown races in 2015, the last horse to accomplish the feat was Affirmed in 1978. Affirmed's trainer? Barrera, who won the Derby two times in a three-year span; Bold Forbes placed first in 1976. A Hall of Famer, Barrera became the first trainer to win four straight Eclipse Awards (1976 through 1979). He won nearly 2,300 races during his career as a trainer, which included five Triple Crown triumphs: Affirmed's sweep in 1978, while Bold Forbes added the Belmont in 1976.
Harvey Guy Bedwell: Hailing from Roseburg, Oregon, Bedwell trained the first Triple Crown winner — Sir Barton in 1919. Per his Hall of Fame biography, "Bedwell led all North American trainers in wins each year from 1912 through 1917." Along with Sir Barton, Bedwell trained one other Hall of Fame racehorse: Billy Kelly, Sir Barton's stablemate.
Max Hirsch: Hirsch trained a trio of Kentucky Derby winners: Bold Venture (1936), Assault (1946) and Middleground (1950). The latter two were owned by King Ranch. Assault went on to win the Triple Crown in 1946. Hirsch won nine Triple Crown races in all; along with his three Derbies, he had four victories (1928, 1946, 1950 and 1954) in the Belmont and two (1936 and 1946) in the Preakness. Hirsch's bio on the Hall of Fame website notes "although records from Hirsch’s training from 1900 through 1908 are incomplete," it's confirmed the Texan won "1,933 races with purse earnings of $12,203,270 from 1909 through 1969."
Lucien Laurin: Known for training 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat, as well as Riva Ridge (which won the Derby and Belmont in 1972), Laurin captured one other of horse racing's crown jewels: Amberoid finished first in the 1966 Belmont. Laurin picked up the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer in 1972 and went into the Hall of Fame in 1977.
Herbert J. Thompson: Tied with Lukas for third all time in Derby victories, Thompson won the race on four occasions: 1921 (with Behave Yourself), 1926 (with Bubbling Over), 1932 (with Burgoo King) and 1933 (with Brokers Tip). All four of Thompson's wins were with horses owned by Edward R. Bradley. A Hall of Famer, Thompson also won the 1932 Preakness with Burgoo King and the 1929 Belmont with Blue Larkspur.
Ansel Williamson: Williamson, a Black man born into slavery in Virginia, will forever hold a place in Derby lore. That's because he trained the winner of the inaugural Run for the Roses, Aristides, in 1875. That same year, he trained the Belmont Stakes winner, Calvin. Williamson was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky Derby trainers who have won the most at Churchill Downs
