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Thirty -Five Favorites Have Won Past Runnings of Kentucky Derby Count Fleet, Victorious at ! Odds of 2 to 5 in 7943, Returned Shortest Price LOUISVILLE, Ky. June 8.— While the Kentucky Derby is essentially a sporting spectacle, the result of which is eagerly anticipated by hundreds of thousands the world over, perhaps no other sporting event on the American scene has so instilled the public with the undeniable urge to back his or her choice with some tangible evidence of faith. Whether it is dollars or doughnuts, or just a nickel cigar, few indeed, will have neglected to make some sort of wager when the soft strains of My Old Kentucky Home ! waft gently over historic Churchill Downs tomorrow. What are your chances of collecting your wager? If you are conservative, and prefer to string along with the established favorite, then your chances are decidedly good. In 70 previous runnings of this greatest of all thoroughbred races, 35 public choices have been returned to the winners circle to be draped in a blanket of roses. Thats a truly remarkable percentage, considering the blue-ribbon fields of three-year-olds which annually contest the coveted Derby prize. Donerail Upsets in 1913 First of all of the Derby favorites to win, was the gallant colt Aristides who had the distinction of capturing the very first running of the time-honored classic away back in 1875 at odds of 2 to 1. Shortest-priced winner of the event was the remarkable speedster, Count Fleet, which literally galloped to victory in 1943 at odds of 2 to 5. The redoubtable Whirlaway returned the! most liberal price while cast in the favor- | ites role when he paid .90 to after capturing the 1941 renewal. Long shots, too, have earned their share of Derby gold and glory. The greatest of j all Derby upsets occurred in 1913 when T. P. Hayes big bay colt, Donerail, came from out of the pack under Roscoe Goose to win at the fabulous odds of 1.40 to I . Another stunning upset occurred in 1940 when Gallahadion, from the estab-j lishment of Mrs. Ethel V. Mars, won the at the handsome return of 5.20 to . Gallahadion, incidentally, never quite lived up to the fame he had acquired by virtue of his Derby conquest, and the strapping bay colt failed in subsequent three-year-old classics. Perhaps the most famous thoroughbred to win a Derby at long odds was the be- I loved Exterminator, who carried Willis ! Sharp Kilmers silks to an upset victory in l 1918. "Old Bones." as Exterminator was j affectionately known, paid 9.60 to . 1 The gallant Exterminator will long be re- j membered as one of the American turfs j most notable performers. No more than six favorites have ever Von consecutive Derbies. Back in the pe- ! riod from 1891 to 1896, Kingman, Azra, Lookout Chant, Halma. and Ben Brush j kept the sequence of winning favorites in- tact. From 1901 to 1904. long shot winners I were in fashion. Upsetting the calculations during this period were His Eminence, ! Alan-A-Dale, Judge Himes and Elwood.
