What is the greatest Kentucky Derby winning horse of all time?

By YPB Team

The Kentucky Derby has crowned champion thoroughbreds for over 150 years, producing legendary racehorses whose names — Secretariat, Citation, American Pharoah — are etched permanently into sports history.

Citation

The 1948 Triple Crown champion who went 19-for-20 as a three-year-old, widely bracketed with Secretariat and Man o' War as one of the three greatest American racehorses ever.

Seattle Slew

The 1977 Triple Crown winner and the only horse to win the Triple Crown while remaining undefeated, purchased for only $17,500 before becoming a legend.

Affirmed

The 1978 Triple Crown champion whose legendary rivalry with Alydar — who finished second in all three races — produced the most dramatic Triple Crown campaign in history.

American Pharoah

The 2015 Triple Crown winner who ended a 37-year drought, becoming the first horse since Affirmed to capture all three jewels of the Crown.

Spectacular Bid

The 1979 Derby winner who won 26 of 30 career starts and is considered one of the greatest horses never to win the Triple Crown after a safety pin injury derailed his Belmont bid.

Whirlaway

The 1941 Triple Crown winner nicknamed Mr. Longtail who won the Kentucky Derby by a record eight lengths, trained by the legendary Ben A. Jones.

Justify

The 2018 Triple Crown winner trained by Bob Baffert who became the first undefeated Triple Crown champion since Seattle Slew and never raced after winning the Belmont.

Count Fleet

The 1943 Triple Crown champion who won the Belmont Stakes by an astonishing 25 lengths and won all six starts as a three-year-old before injury forced his retirement.

Northern Dancer

The 1964 Derby winner who became the most influential sire in Thoroughbred history, his bloodlines now running through an estimated 75% of modern racehorses.