Medina Spirit became the seventh Florida-bred to win the Kentucky Derby which is second only to Kentucky's 112. The most recent Florida-bred to win the Kentucky Derby was Silver Charm in 1997 and prior to that Unbridled in 1990. In 1979, Affirmed won the Triple Crown and is considered by many to be the greatest Florida-bred of all-time.
Medina Spirit [/B]was originally sold for $1,000 as a yearling but then in 2020 sold for $35,000. Current owner is Saudi Arabian businessman and philanthropist Amr bin Fareed bin Mohammed bin Zedan who races under Zedan Racing Stable and is a relative newcomer to the sport. By comparison, last year's Kentucky Derby winner Authentic was a $350,000 purchase.
John Velazquez became the first jockey since Calvin Borel in 2009 to win the Oaks-Derby double. The jockey won the Derby for the fourth time and could tie the all-time mark for a rider with his next Derby mount. He has won three of the past five years.
Bob Baffert ended the day with 221 Grade I wins in North America. The record at the start of the day included Wayne Lukas's total of 219.