If Pants on Fire crosses the finish line first at Louisville’s Churchill Downs on Derby Day, Rosie Napravnik will become the first lady jockey ever to win the Run for the Roses.
With eight wins, Pants on Fire (Jump Start x Cabo De Noche by Cape Town) recently took first in the March Louisiana Derby. The March 2008 colt, owned by George and Lori Hall and trained by Kelly Breen, finished sixth in February’s Risen Star and second in January’s Lecomte.
Coming off a proud receipt of the 2011 spring meet title at Fair Grounds Race Course, in New Orleans, Louisiana, Napravnik is also engaged to be married.
Saddling up on Pants on Fire on May 7th, the 23-year-old New Jersey farm girl Napravnik is just the sixth female to ride a Derby racer. Julie Krone raced the prestigious event twice (see below).
Lady jockeys in Kentucky Derby races have included:
- Diane Crump rode Fathom to 15th place in 1970.
- Patricia Cooksey rode So Vague to 11th place in 1984.
- Andrea Seefeldt rode Forty Something to 16th place in 1991.
- Julie Krone rode Ecstatic Ride to 14th place in 1992 and rode Suave Prospect to 11th place in 1995.
- Rosemary Homeister rode Supah Blitz to 13th place in 2003.
The 2011 Kentucky Derby is set for Saturday, May 7th, airing live on NBC Sports.
Comments