Sovereignty's 2025 Kentucky Derby Win Draws 17.7M Viewers, Biggest Audience Since 1989

With 17.7 million viewers, the 151st Kentucky Derby delivered the race’s largest audience since 1989—all tuning in to watch Sovereignty’s thrilling victory, per NBC Sports.

According to NBC Sports, its 25th broadcast of the event marked the most-watched Derby in 36 years, trailing only 1989’s edition when Sunday Silence drew 18.5 million viewers. This year’s numbers also reflect a six percent increase from last year’s 16.7 million.

Viewership peaked between 7 and 7:15 p.m. ET as the race hit its stride, with millions watching Sovereignty pull away from betting favorite Journalism by 1.5 lengths. It marked the highest peak audience NBC Sports has ever recorded for a Kentucky Derby broadcast, per NBC Sports.

The 2025 Kentucky Derby became NBC's most-watched Saturday event since the NFL Wild Card Playoffs in 2024, excluding the Paris Olympics.

Sovereignty finished the Kentucky Derby in sloppy conditions on Saturday at Churchill Downs with a time of 2:02:31, ridden by jockey Junior Alvarado and trained by Bill Motts, winning his second Kentucky Derby.

The bay colt is set to draw high viewership once again for NBC in two weeks on May 17 as he chases the Triple Crown at the 150th Preakness Stakes.