Medina Spirit wins the Kentucky Derby to give Bob Baffert a record seven titles and a rare upset

But Velazquez kept marveling in the run-up, and so what they did, trainer and jockey, proved similar to what they did eight months ago at the 2020 Derby. They had their horse, then Authentic, go out to the lead and then dare and then fight. Baffert noted that in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes on Jan. 30 at Santa Anita, “When [Medina Spirit] goes out there fast, in the race, and they turned for home, and they come at him, he wouldn’t let them pass.” Medina Spirit’s only losses had come when having to chase. Baffert told Velazquez, “If you’re turning for home on the lead, maybe he’ll give you the rest.”