A day after the 2026 Kentucky Derby was slightly delayed after Great White was scratched following being spooked near the starting gate, the horse is OK.
Trainer John Ennis told the Associated Press that Great White was fine after the incident. “He’s perfect,” Ennis told the AP. “Very fresh. [The incident] took nothing out of him.”
Ennis added that jockey Alex Achard was also unhurt despite being thrown off.
Minutes before the race was set to commence, an upset Great White rolled and threw jockey Alex Achard. The horse was quickly scratched by track veterinarians, leaving the 21st post empty.
The horse, co-owned by Three Chimneys Farm, had been a replacement after Silent Tactic’s scratch Wednesday due to a sore foot. He was a long shot at 50-1 on the morning line and also the largest horse in the field at 1,370 pounds.
On Sunday morning, BloodHorse’s Sean Collins posted videos of a much calmer Great White being led out of the stable, with the large horse set to return home.
Golden Tempo, a 23-to-1 long shot, went on to win the race, making Cherie DeVaux the first female trainer to win the Derby.
At the time Great White was spooked, about half of the horses had been loaded into the gates; horses are typically loaded two at a time. After Great White was scratched, though, all of the horses had to be taken out of the gate and reloaded.
Jose Ortiz, who jockeyed Golden Tempo, said he kept him and his winning horse out of the gates once he saw Great White react.
“When you load into the gate, you don’t want to back up,” Ortiz told the AP. “I wasn’t in there yet, so I was very happy. My guy wanted to put me in. [I said]: “No, no, no. He’s going to be scratched. Don’t put me in.”
