The 2025 Kentucky Derby field is set and post positions have been assigned, with the morning line favorite, Journalism, at 3-1 and running out of the 8 gate. He will be challenged by a strong field that includes two horses trained by Bob Baffert, as the legendary trainer returns to Churchill Downs for the first time since 2021 when Medina Spirit was stripped of the Derby crown after testing positive for an anti-inflammatory in post-race screening, resulting in Baffert receiving a three-year ban from the track.
Among the most interesting parts of the race is the prize money handed out. It’s one of the richest races in the world on top of being the most prestigious. Let’s take a closer look at how all the money breaks down.
2025 Kentucky Derby purse breakdown
For the second consecutive year, the Kentucky Derby will feature a $5 million purse, paid out to the top five horses in the field. The winner of the race will take home $3.1 million (more than the entire purse was back in 2023), while the horse that finishes second will still pull down $1 million. The full purse breakdown for the top 5 horses in the field looks like this:
- First: $3.1 million
- Second: $1 million
- Third: $500,000
- Fourth: $250,000
- Fifth: $150,000
How much will the winning jockey make?
Jockeys at the Kentucky Derby negotiate a guaranteed riding fee of at least $500 to run the race, but there is a potential for a massive payday for the riders that finish in the money. The typical prize split for the winning horse is 80% going to the owners, 10% to the trainer and 10% to the jockey. Last year, Brian Hernandez Jr. took home $310,000 for riding Mystik Dan to the winner’s circle.
With the purse remaining the same for this year, the winning jockey in the 151st Run for the Roses will earn that same $310,000 prize — with some of that money going to the jockey’s agent and valet as well. The jockeys who finish in second and third typically take home 5% of the purse, which is $50,000 and $25,000 respectively.
2025 Kentucky Derby jockeys
The 20 jockeys hoping to ride their horse to the winner’s circle and that six-figure payday are:
- Martin Garcia (Citizen Bull; 20-1): Two career wins
- Flavien Prat (Neoquos; 30-1): 84 career wins
- Luan Machado (Final Gambit; 30-1): 58 career wins
- Mike Smith (Rodriguez; 12-1): 11 career wins
- Nik Juarez (American Promise; 30-1): 15 career wins
- Christophe Lemaire (Admire Dayton; 30-1): Two career wins
- Joao Moreira (Luxor Cafe; 15-1): Two career wins
- Umberto Rispoli (Journalism; 3-1): 43 career wins
- Brian Hernandez Jr. (Burnham Square; 12-1): 42 career wins
- John Velazquez (Grande; 20-1): 29 career wins
- Joseph Ramos (Flying Mohawk; 30-1): 49 career wins
- Manuel Franco (East Avenue; 20-1): 89 career wins
- Irad Ortiz Jr. (Publisher; 20-1): 104 career wins
- Joel Rosario (Tiztastic; 20-1): 24 career wins
- Julien Leparoux (Render Judgement; 30-1): 23 career wins
- Juan Vargas (Coal Battle; 30-1): 14 career wins
- Jose Ortiz (Sandman; 6-1): 92 career wins
- Junior Alvarado (Sovereignty; 5-1): 39 career wins
- Jareth Loveberry (Chunk of Gold; 30-1): 41 career wins
- Javier Castellano (Owen Almighty; 30-1): 34 career wins
Hernandez is looking to go back-to-back with Burnham Square, while five other former Derby winners are in the field. Javier Castellano, Flavien Prat and Joel Rosario each have one Kentucky Derby win to their names, while Mike Smith has won twice and placed four times in 28 appearances and John Velazquez has three wins and two places in 26 runs at the Derby (he also ran Medina Spirit to the win in 2021 before the horse was DQ’d).
Five jockeys are making their first Derby appearance, as Juan Vargas, Joe Ramos, Joao Moreira, Luan Machado and Nik Juarez are all new to the crown jewel of horse racing. Journalism’s jockey, Umberto Rispoli, has never finished higher than ninth in his two Derby appearances.
This news was originally published on this post .
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