Brad Cox is writing poetry about what the Kentucky Derby (G1) means to him as a Louisville native who grew up just a few blocks away Churchill Downs the back, south side of the seven-groove trough. He talks about how there is nothing like it, both about the race itself and the spectacle surrounding it.
“Winning it is a dream of mine and I look forward to doing it one day.”
Wait, what? A reporter reminds Cox that he HAS won the Kentucky Derby! Actually, that was just two years ago, remember? The coach smiled.
“I have,” Cox said, “but not in the way I ever expected to win it.”
The 43-year-old knows what it feels like to win what he says is the greatest race in America. But getting kissed after being disqualified nine months after the party was over isn’t how any coach growing up imagines it happening, if they dare.
Cox is incredibly proud of his first Derby winner, mandalun who finished second in the 2021 Derby but was promoted to first when Medina spirit was disqualified for a raceday drug violation. It was not until February 2022, after many investigations and legal challenges, that Churchill Downs officially recognized the new results.
Now, however, Cox wants to win the old-fashioned way, with the rush of watching your horse in front of the finish line, not to mention the celebration, the winner’s circle in the yard, photo official, press conference, champagne toast at Derby Museum, interview on “Today” show, Preakness hype, Triple Crown dream and everything else.
“I definitely want to push the boundaries first and take a trip to the patio and have a nice weekend,” he said.
If the Derby can mean more to any coach than the next, it could mean more to Cox and Dale Romans, two from the vicinity around Churchill. Downs. In Cox’s case, his childhood home was on Evelyn Ave., in the Oakdale neighborhood.
“It’s a good middle-class neighborhood,” he said. “You can cycle around with your friends without feeling threatened or scared. I don’t really know how it is now but it was a good neighborhood to grow up in.”
Cox first visited Churchill Downs with his father, who was not involved in racing but stopped in from time to time to place a $2 bet on whatever horse Pat Day was riding. Directly attending Brad Cox’s first Derby was Lil E. Tee in 1992.
In high school, Cox was an athlete but as his dreams of advancing in team sports faded, a new dream came to him.
“I played baseball and basketball and wasn’t as good as I thought, or maybe not as good as I expected,” he said. “I thought, maybe I’ll try to make a living in the horse business.”
Has he ever. Cox has over 2,000 wins. In addition to the Derby, his horses won the Belmont Stakes (G1), the Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) and nine Breeders’ Cup races, including the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1). He’s 18th on the all-time winning list at Churchill Downs.
Cox had four chances in the 20-horse Derby. angel of the empire winner of the Arkansas Derby (G1) and Risen Star Stakes (G2), the highest rated of the quartet.
“He had to step up and run the race of his life,” Cox said. “The Arkansas Derby was a great run but I think he needs to move forward. I think he will. I love what I saw from him in the morning and he is preparing for it. a great effort.”
Verification in progress ran the race to win the Blue Grass Stakes (G1) for most of the year but was finished by Tapit Trice . The top two are more than five lengths from the rest of the pitch.
“He’s had two works here and they’re very, very good,” Cox said. “Tyler (Gaffalione) was on his ship for both of you. He loves what he feels from him and sees from him. I love what I see from him. I think he He’ll be ready for a big race.”
impressions Withers winner (G3) and Wood Memorial runner-up (G2), and Jace’s Road , third in the Louisiana Derby (G2), were long shots. But then, so did Mandaloun.
