Authentic's Derby Win Voted NTRA Moment of the Year
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Photo: Skip Dickstein
Authentic repels Tiz the Law to win the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs
The National Thoroughbred Racing Association announced Jan. 28 that Authentic 's stirring triumph in the 146th Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) 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 Sept. 5 at 7:05 p.m. ET on a day that saw the Run for the Roses contested without fans at Churchill Downs due to COVID-19. Under 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 ownership of B. Wayne Hughes. MyRaceHorse Stable, Madaket Stables, and Starlight Racing also co-owned Authentic in races last summer and fall.
The Kentucky Derby also gave Velazquez his 200th career grade 1 triumph and trainer Bob Baffert a record-tying sixth win in the classic.
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Adding to the magnitude of the moment was that Authentic's triumph ignited a celebration from the more than 5,000 owners within the MyRaceHorse Stable partnership.
Represented on Twitter by the hashtag #AuthenticDerby, the winning moment earned 1,363 votes.
The FanDuel Racing-NTRA Moment of the Year will be recognized and memorialized at the 50th Annual Eclipse Awards presented by Spendthrift Farm that will air live on TVG and Racetrack Television Network Jan. 28 at 8 p.m. The ceremony will also be streamed at Bloodhorse.com.
Moment of the Year voters chose from 11 occurrences in 2020 illustrating a range of human emotions as well as outstanding displays of equine athleticism. Authentic's exploits actually accounted for the top two voting choices as his triumph in the Nov. 7 Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), represented by the hashtag #AuthenticClassic, finished second in the balloting with 1,010 votes.
Finishing third in the voting was Greg Harbut and Ray Daniels becoming the first Black owners in 13 years to have a Kentucky Derby starter when Necker Island finished ninth as part of an ownership group that includes Wayne Scherr. Harbut races as Will Harbut Racing Stables, a syndicate named for his great-grandfather.
Signified by the hashtag #RepresentationMatters, that moment garnered 508 votes.