Fastest Winning Times In Kentucky Derby History—the Great Secretariat Remains Gold Standard

By Author: Lee Lane-Edgar
Total Articles: 365
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The Kentucky Derby has long been known as “the most exciting two minutes in sports.” While that's certainly a catchy tagline, it's not exactly accurate. In fact, two winners of the 1 1/4-mile American classic, which was first run in 1875, finished the race in under 2:00.

Secretariat, who is widely considered the greatest horse in history, set the Kentucky Derby record when he circled the Churchill Downs track in 1:59 2/5 in 1973. The only other horse to approach that mark was Monarchos, who won the 2001 Kentucky Derby in 1:59.97.

Here's the 10 fastest finishing time for the Kentucky Derby:
Secretariat 1:59 2/5 1973
Monarchos 1:59.97 2001
Spend A Buck 2:00 1/5 1985
Northern Dancer 2:00.00 1964
Decidedly 2:00 2/5 1962
Proud Clarion 2:00 3/5 1965
Grindstone 2:01.06 1996
Fusaichi Pegasus 2:01.12 2000
War Emblem 2:01.13 2002
Funny Cide 2:01.19 2003

Secretariat would go on to become the first Triple Crown winner since Assault in 1946. Secretariat's final time in the Preakness Stakes remains a source of controversy.

The Pimlico teletimer ...
... posted a final time of 1:55 flat for the 1 3/16-miles following the race. However, there was a malfunction with the teletimer during the race so the Pimlico brass turned to official track clocker E.T. McLean Jr., who hand timed the race in 1:54 2/5. Others, though, including two clockers from the Daily Racing Form, timed the race in 1:53 2/5, which would have set a new record.

Ultimately, after several days of debate, Pimlico officials went with McLean's 1:54 2/5 as the race's official time.

Just three weeks after the controversial decision, Secretariat erased all doubt to his greatness with a tour de force performance in the 1 ½ mile Belmont Stakes. Secretariat decimated the field in the Belmont by an unheard of 31 laps while shattering the record for the distance by more than two seconds. The final time of 2:24 flat is still the fastest time any horse in the world has traveled 1 ½ miles.

Monarchos, the only other horse to win the Kentucky Derby in under 2:00, benefited largely from a track that was playing lightning fast that first Saturday in May, 2001. Monarchos sat back in 13th behind a blistering early pace in which the opening half-mile went in 44.86 and six furlongs in 1:09.25.
The big gray Monarchos came rolling on the outside to win at 11-to-1 and join Secretariat as the only other horse to finish the Derby in under two minutes.