Ahead of Saturday's big Grade One contest – the Travers Stakesfor 3yolds – we look at how many Kentucky Derby winners have followed up in the Saratoga race.
Only a elite group of NINE horses in thoroughbred racing history have accomplished the feat of winning both the Kentucky Derby and Saratoga's premier 3-year-old midsummer feature, the Travers Stakes.
Saratoga Race Course has earned the moniker "Graveyard of Champions" precisely because so many Kentucky Derby winners have fallen short in upstate New York.
However, could things on this front be turning?
As last year's Derby hero Sovereigntybecome the first horse to also land the Travers since Street Sense in 2007.
And we could get another in 2026, as the Run For The Roses hero Golden Tempo is the 2026 Travers Stakes favorite.
Despite the brutal historic attrition rate, nine horse racing legends have captured both prestigious titles:
Baden-Baden (1877)
Hindoo (1881)
Twenty Grand (1931)
Whirlaway (1941)
Shut Out (1942)
Sea Hero (1993)
Thunder Gulch (1995)
Street Sense (2007)
Sovereignty (2025)
Sovereignty's victory in the Grade 1 Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course put a punctuation mark on his claim to the three-year-old division, delivering a performance as authoritative as it was historic.
Owned by Godolphin and trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, the colt became the first Kentucky Derby winner to go on and conquer Saratoga's "Midsummer Derby" since Street Sense accomplished the feat in 2007.
Ridden by Junior Alvarado, Sovereignty displayed a rare combination of tactical poise and raw power. After navigating tight quarters along the rail behind early pacesetters, Alvarado angled the colt four-wide turning for home.
What followed was an effortless gear shift-Sovereignty swept past the leaders to pull away down the stretch, drawing off to a magnificent 10-length triumph in 2:00.84 for the 1 1/4-mile test.
The win was particularly sweet for Mott, marking his first career victory in the Travers after 13 previous attempts.
By sweeping the Kentucky Derby, Belmont Stakes, Jim Dandy, and Travers, Sovereignty joined an exceptionally elite lineage.
Beyond ending the 18-year drought for Derby winners in the Travers, he also became just the fifth horse in racing history to achieve the Derby-Belmont-Travers triple-a club featuring legends like Whirlaway and Thunder Gulch.
His victory at Saratoga cemented his legacy as one of the most dominant sophomore colts of the modern era.
All eyes at Saratoga on Saturday, August 29, 2026, will center on Golden Tempo, the standard-bearer for the 2026 generation.
Fresh off victories in both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes, the dual Classic winner skipped the Jim Dandy Stakes to train up to the Travers.
Conditioned by Cherie DeVaux-who made history earlier this year as the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby-Golden Tempo enters as the morning-line favorite.
If he handles the 1 1/4-mile test at the Spa, he will join the rarefied air of the previous nine champion colts.
Plus will also be looking to emulate last year's winner Sovereignty as a Derby/Belmont/ Travers winner.
Date Saturday, August 29, 2026
Post Time 6:10 PM ET (Approximate)
Track Saratoga Race Course (Saratoga Springs, NY)
Distance 1 1/4 Miles (10 Furlongs, Dirt)
Purse $1,250,000
TV Coverage FOX (Main Broadcast: 3:00 PM – 6:30 PM ET) / FS1 / FanDuel TV
Morning Line Favorite Golden Tempo (5-2)
Emerging Market: 14-1, Ricardo Santana Jr. Chad Brown
Leading Change: 10-1, Manny Franco Brad Cox
Napoleon Solo: 12-1, John Velazquez Chad Summers
The Puma: 8-1, Javier Castellano Gustavo Delgado
Renegade: 3-1, Tyler Gaffalione Todd Pletcher
Ocelli: 33-1, Edgard Zayas Whit Beckman
Sea Strike: 5-1, Flavien Prat Chad Brown
Baby Vino: 10-1, Paco Lopez Lindsay Schultz
Golden Tempo: 5-2, Jose Ortiz Cherie DeVaux
Silent Tactic: 16-1, Luis Saez Mark Casse
Note: Travers stakes betting odds are subject to change
2025 – Sovereignty, William I. Mott Junior Alvarado
2024 – Fierceness, Todd A. Pletcher John R. Velazquez
2023 – Arcangelo, Jena Antonucci Javier Castellano
2022 – Epicenter, Steven M. Asmussen Joel Rosario
2021 – Essential, Quality Brad H. Cox Luis Saez
2020 – Tiz the Law, Barclay Tagg Manuel Franco
2019 – Code of Honor, Claude R. McGaughey III John R. Velazquez
2018 – Catholic Boy, Jonathan Thomas Javier Castellano
2017 – West Coast, Bob Baffert Mike E. Smith
2016 – Arrogate, Bob Baffert Mike E. Smith
Related Headlines
