Kentucky Derby 2020 Payout: Finishing Times, Prize Money Earnings for Field

An unusual 2020 Kentucky Derby led to a surprising upset win for Authentic and his connections as he outpaced favorite Tiz the Law to capture the second leg of the Triple Crown in front of a nearly empty Churchill Downs in Louisville.  

The result confirms there will be no Triple Crown winner this year. Tiz the Law was established as the odds-on favorite based on his convincing win at the Belmont, but Authentic and his team dashed his hopes of becoming the 14th horse in history to win all three races. 

The Bob Baffert-trained horse answered any questions about whether he could handle 1¼ miles. Tiz the Law bided his time before making a run at the eventual winner down the final stretch, and Authentic had no issue sprinting down the stretch and holding off the favorite. 

Even though the race was run in September instead of its usual May date because of the COVID-19 pandemic the big money at stake that always makes this race interesting was still in play. Here's how the payouts for the $3 million purse were distributed. 

2020 Kentucky Derby Payouts

1. Authentic—$1.86 million

2. Tiz the Law—$600,000

3. Mr. Big News—$300,000

4. Honor A. P.—$150,000

5. Max Player—$90,000

2020 Kentucky Derby Order of Finish

1. Authentic (2:00:01)

2. Tiz the Law (1¼ lengths)

3. Mr. Big News (3¼ lengths)

4. Honor A. P. (5 lengths)

5. Max Player (7 lengths)

6. Storm the Court (9 lengths)

7. Enforceable (10¼ lengths)

8. Ny Traffic (13¾ lengths)

9. Necker Island (14¾ lengths)

10. Major Fed (15¾ lengths)

11. Sole Volante (16¾ lengths)

12. Winning Impression (21½ lengths)

13. Money Moves (22¼ lengths)

14. Attachment Rate (24 lengths)

15. South Bend (25¾ lengths)

16. Finnick the Fierce (scratch)

17. King Guillermo (scratch)

18. Thousand Words (scratch)

Of course the owner, trainers and all the connections aren't the only ones who made some money after the Derby. There's no doubt there were many bettors who were glued to their TV's for Authentic's win, and those who believed in him or had long shot Mr. Big News getting on the board were rewarded handsomely. 

The race played out in the way a lot of experts predicted from the outset. Authentic broke out of his outside gate and rushed to the front of the pack immediately with Tiz the Law biding his time. The favorite has played the long game in several of his starts this year, usually able to pull away from the pack toward the end of the race. 

It wasn't until the latter half of the race when the script was flipped. When jockey Manuel Franco went to make his move, Authentic and jockey John Velazquez proved up to the challenge and kept the lead stride for stride all the way to the finish line. 

This was Velazquez's third win under the Twin Spires at Churchill Downs. He won in 2011 aboard Animal Kingdom and again in 2017 with Always Dreaming. 

The win is a big one for Baffert as he continues to be a safe bet to perform well in Louisville. This is his sixth Derby win, tying him with Ben Jones for most all-time. 

It wasn't looking like it was going to be a good evening for Baffert. He had two entrants in the race; however, Thousand Words was a late scratch after he reared up and fell in the paddock just before post time. That brought what was already a small field for the Derby down to just 15 horses. 

The smaller field was ostensibly an advantage for the favorite who was breaking from the 17th gate—a post that has never produced a Derby winner—instead that little bit of trivia remains true as Authentic had other plans. 

Authentic saw charges from Ny Traffic and Storm the Court early as he set the pace. While those two ended up losing steam and falling to eighth and sixth, respectively, the eventual winner just kept trucking in perhaps a more impressive performance than Tiz the Law's trip at the Belmont. 

Now the focus will shift to the Preakness. While there isn't a possibility of a Triple Crown winner, another high stakes showdown between the Belmont winner and the newly crowned Derby champion could be in the cards. In a slightly shorter 1 3/16 mile we could see Tiz the Law push the pace a little earlier and test Authentic's stamina earlier.