Churchill Downs reported a record $487 million in all-sources wagering for Kentucky Derby Week, even as betting on the Derby Day card fell from last year’s peak. The total was up $13 million, or 3%, from the previous record set in 2025.
The shift came from a different part of the week. Friday’s Kentucky Oaks card produced record wagering after the race moved into a later national television window, helping offset a softer Derby Day betting total.
Derby Day slipped after four record years
All-sources wagering on the Kentucky Derby Day program reached $340 million, down from last year’s record $349 million. Betting on the Derby race itself was $225 million, compared with $234 million in 2025.
The race still delivered a packed day for Churchill Downs. Attendance was reported at more than 150,000, while Golden Tempo won the 152nd Kentucky Derby and made Cherie DeVaux the first woman to train a Derby winner.
Great White was scratched shortly before the race after flipping near the gate and throwing jockey Alex Achard. The late scratch cut the field and led to refunds on wagers tied to the horse, though Churchill Downs did not attribute the Derby handle decline to one factor.
Primetime Oaks delivers the betting lift
The Kentucky Oaks card handled about $89 million, up roughly 18% from the prior record. Churchill Downs moved the Oaks into an 8:40 p.m. ET post time this year, giving the race a later national window than its traditional early-evening slot.
That later start drew criticism in Louisville because Oaks Day has long fed into local restaurant and event traffic. On the betting side, the move gave the race more room in prime time and helped turn Friday into the week’s main handle driver.
TwinSpires also posted record Kentucky Derby Week numbers. Churchill Downs said its advance-deposit wagering platform handled $129 million on Churchill races for the week, up $7 million from the previous record.
Prediction market contracts stayed off the board
The week also showed Churchill Downs’ willingness to protect its racing wagering structure from prediction market products. Polymarket briefly listed Kentucky Derby contracts before removing them after Churchill Downs objected.
Kalshi did not list Derby markets, while Novig also removed its Derby market and issued refunds. The removals kept the race largely outside the current prediction market fight, at least for this year’s Triple Crown opener.
