Three stallions have sired multiple contenders for 2023 Kentucky Derby. Meet the fathers.

The background and bloodlines of a horse say a lot about its potential chances in a stakes race, and the Kentucky Derby is no different.

The sire of a horse provides information about the horse’s racing ability on different surfaces, which race lengths suit the horse the best, and other advantages over the rest of the field come race day.

With this in mind, here’s a look at the sire of each 2023 Kentucky Derby contender, including the four horses that have sired multiple horses set to race in this year’s Run for the Roses.

The sires are listed in alphabetical order.

Candy Ride

▪ Kentucky Derby horses: Confidence Game (20-1 morning-line odds from post No. 4) and Hit Show (30-1 odds from post No. 1).

▪ An Argentinian horse, Candy Ride was a perfect 6-for-6 in his racing career, and he recorded Equibase speed figures of 120 or greater in each of his final three races.

▪ Candy Ride is also the sire of Gun Runner, who is himself the sire of 2023 Derby contender Disarm.

Classic Empire

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Angel of Empire (8-1 odds from post No. 12).

▪ A five-time winner in nine career starts, Classic Empire won the Arkansas Derby in 2017 and was fourth in that year’s Kentucky Derby.

▪ The final race of Classic Empire’s career was a second-place showing in the 2017 Preakness Stakes.

Creative Cause

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: King Russell (50-1 odds from post No. 18).

▪ Creative Cause won four of 10 career starts, and fared reasonably well in his two Triple Crown events: He ran fifth in the 2012 Kentucky Derby and third in the 2012 Preakness Stakes, which was his final race.

▪ Creative Cause has had progeny in the Kentucky Derby before: My Boy Jack finished fifth in the 2018 Kentucky Derby.

Good Magic

▪ Kentucky Derby horses: Mage (15-1 odds from post No. 8) and Reincarnate (50-1 odds from post No. 7).

▪ Good Magic only won three of nine career starts, but his career was littered with quality finishes in high-level races: Good Magic finished in the money in six of eight career graded stakes races.

▪ Good Magic finished second in the 2018 Kentucky Derby and fourth in that year’s Preakness Stakes.

Gun Runner

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Disarm (30-1 odds from post No. 9).

▪ The legendary Gun Runner was the 2017 Horse of the Year after winning five consecutive Grade 1 races, and ultimately won 12 of his 19 career starts.

▪ Gun Runner finished third in the 2016 Kentucky Derby.

Hard Spun

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Two Phil’s (12-1 odds from post No. 3).

▪ A seven-time winner in 13 career starts, Hard Spun was second in the 2007 Kentucky Derby behind Street Sense.

▪ It’s hard to have a better Triple Crown season, without actually winning a race, than Hard Spun did in 2017: He ran second in the Kentucky Derby, third in the Preakness Stakes and fourth in the Belmont Stakes.

Into Mischief

▪ Kentucky Derby horses: Cyclone Mischief (30-1 odds from post No. 16), Rocket Can (30-1 odds from post No. 15) and Sun Thunder (50-1 odds from post No. 11).

▪ Into Mischief finished first or second in all six of his career starts, which all came in California.

▪ Cyclone Mischief moved into the projected 20-horse Kentucky Derby field on Thursday afternoon after Practical Move scratched out of the race.

Justify

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Verifying (15-1 odds from post No. 2).

▪ A perfect 6-for-6 in his racing career, Justify won the Triple Crown in 2018.

▪ Verifying will be Justify’s first progeny to race in the Kentucky Derby.

Mind Your Biscuits

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Derma Sotogake (10-1 odds from post No. 14).

▪ A heavily raced horse who finished in the money in a remarkable 21 of his 25 career starts, Mind Your Biscuits raced in graded stakes all over the world, including in the United Arab Emirates.

▪ Mind Your Biscuits closed his racing career at Churchill Downs in Louisville, but he ran 11th in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Quality Road

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Jace’s Road (50-1 odds from post No. 10).

▪ Quality Road went 8-3-1 in 13 career races. His only finish outside of the money came in his final race, when he ran 12th in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs.

Shanghai Bobby

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Mandarin Hero (20-1 odds from post No. 17).

▪ Shanghai Bobby won six of eight career races, including the 2012 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. He ran a career-worst fifth in the 2013 Florida Derby.

▪ Mandarin Hero moved into the Kentucky Derby field on Thursday afternoon after Lord Miles was removed from the race following the suspension of his trainer, Saffie Joseph Jr.

Tapit

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Tapit Trice (5-1 odds from post No. 5).

▪ Tapit has a strong record as a sire in the Triple Crown, and in particular the Belmont Stakes. Tapit has been the sire for the following Belmont Stakes winners: Tonalist (2014), Creator (2016), Tapwrit (2017) and Essential Quality (2021).

▪ Tapit was also the sire of a Derby horse last year: Charge It finished 17th in last year’s Run for the Roses.

Uncle Mo

▪ Kentucky Derby horse: Kingsbarns (12-1 odds from post No. 6).

▪ Uncle Mo, a race favorite, was scratched the day before the 2011 Kentucky Derby after losing significant weight prior to the race due to a gastrointestinal infection.

▪ As a sire, Uncle Mo produced the 2016 Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist.

▪ Uncle Mo was the sire of Mo Donegal, who had a very respectable showing in last year’s Triple Crown races: fifth in the Kentucky Derby and first in the Belmont Stakes.

Violence

▪ Kentucky Derby horses: Raise Cain (50-1 odds from post No. 13).

▪ Violence was lightly raced during his career, making only four starts. He won three of those races, and finished second in the other.

▪ Forte, who was also sired by Violence, was the morning line favorite for the 2023 Kentucky Derby before he was scratched Saturday morning.

This story was originally published May 2, 2023 at 12:57 PM.

Cameron Drummond

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-242-5257

Cameron Drummond works as a sports reporter for the Lexington Herald-Leader with a focus on Kentucky men’s basketball recruiting and the UK men’s basketball team, horse racing, soccer and other sports in Central Kentucky. Drummond is a second-generation American who was born and raised in Texas, before graduating from Indiana University. He is a fluent Spanish speaker who previously worked as a community news reporter in Austin, Texas. Support my work with a digital subscription