Burnham Square Looks to Break 30-Year Blue Grass–Derby Drought

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) – It’s been more than three decades since a winner of the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland has gone on to wear the roses on the first Saturday in May. The last horse to pull off the Blue Grass-Derby double was Strike the Gold in 1991.

Last year, Sierra Leone came heartbreakingly close, finishing just a nose behind Mystik Dan in a thrilling Kentucky Derby finish. Now in 2025, it’s Burnham Square who hopes to end the 30-year dry spell.

Riding Burnham Square in the 151st Kentucky Derby will be Brian Hernandez Jr., who is no stranger to Derby pressure. Hernandez was aboard Mystik Dan in last year’s Derby victory, and also piloted Thorpedo Anna to win the Kentucky Oaks the day before. He now looks to add a Blue Grass-Derby double to his résumé.

In the Blue Grass Stakes earlier this month, Hernandez and Burnham Square delivered an outstanding performance, essentially moving from last to first down the home stretch. The colt broke from post position three that day and will break from post nine this Saturday at Churchill Downs with 12-1 morning line odds.

Burnham Square is trained by Ian Wilkes, a seasoned horseman whose biggest win as a head trainer came in the 2012 Breeders’ Cup Classic with Fort Larned. In 2007, Wilkes won the Kentucky Derby with Street Sense as an assistant trainer to Carl Nafzger. Now, Wilkes is chasing his first Derby win as a head trainer.

History may not favor Blue Grass winners—but Burnham Square, with the right trip and a familiar, confident jockey in the saddle, could be poised to change that.