After stunning defeat in 2022, Steve Asmussen resumes chase for first Kentucky Derby win

NBC’s Larry Collmus delivered the call racing fans will remember forever, though trainer Steve Asmussen won’t forget it for different reasons.

“They’re coming down to the wire, Epicenter and Zandon. Rich Strike is coming up on the inside! Oh my goodness! The longest shot has won the Kentucky Derby! Rich Strike has done it in a stunning, unbelievable upset!”

Rich Strike’s victory in the 2022 Kentucky Derby at 80-1 odds was a tonic for all fans of the underdog but left Asmussen wondering, “How?”

The Hall of Famer with more victories than any North American trainer ever was this close to his first Kentucky Derby victory with Epicenter, only to see it taken away in the final strides.

“How in the world can you write what just happened?” Asmussen said after the race. “I did not expect to lose.”

It’s been 50 weeks, and Asmussen is back at Churchill Downs, chasing that elusive victory in the Run for the Roses.

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Has he finally gotten over last year’s defeat?

“I never get over anything,” Asmussen said with a smile, “no matter where you end up.”

Asmussen’s hope in this year’s Kentucky Derby is Disarm, a lightly raced son of Gun Runner who enters off a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Lexington on April 15 at Keeneland.

Disarm breezed Monday morning at Churchill Downs, going five furlongs in a stout 1 minute flat.

Asmussen, 57, was pleased with the work but knows all too well about the dangers of hope.

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“I was kind of laughing at myself at the optimism that a trainer has,” Asmussen said. “How many times can you get hit over the head? I love our chances. I love our opportunity. Just extremely fortunate to be here again.”

Stories of Asmussen’s lack of luck at the Kentucky Derby have been as commonplace as mint juleps and seersucker suits.

His first chance came in 2001 with Fifty Stars, who finished ninth. He’s now 0 for 24 all-time, the most horses ever entered by a trainer without winning. Epicenter was his third runner-up, joining Nehro (2011) and Lookin At Lee (2017).

Even Ron Winchell, owner of Disarm, Epicenter, Gun Runner and several other top horses for Asmussen, has grown a bit tired of the narrative. Asked if it was good to see Asmussen back in the Kentucky Derby this year, Winchell laughed off the question.

“We’ve been in enough races,” said Winchell, noting he and Asmussen also have had the past two Preakness runners-up (Epicenter in 2022 and Midnight Bourbon in 2021). “We want to win one. Being there doesn’t cut it anymore.”

Of Asmussen’s Derby contenders over the years, Disarm will be one of the longer shots.

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Disarm broke his maiden in impressive fashion in August at Saratoga, winning by 6 ¼ lengths and earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 86. But he didn’t race again until February, finishing second in an optional claiming race at Oaklawn Park.

He was the runner-up to Kingsbarns in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby on March 25 and, needing a few more points to safely qualify for the Kentucky Derby, finished third in the Lexington.

Asmussen admitted Disarm’s road to the Derby has been unorthodox, but the trainer is pleased to have a healthy contender.

“He’s still not as focused pre-race as he needs to be, and I think racing will help that,” Asmussen said. “We have not gotten his best race, but everybody has seen his potential. … I believe in the horse.”

Asmussen also has reason to believe in himself.

Two months ago he picked up the 10,000^th victory of his career, and last weekend he passed Bob Holthus as the all-time winningest trainer at Oaklawn Park. Among North American trainers this year, Asmussen ranks first in victories (109) and third in purse earnings ($7.1 million).

Now the focus is on the biggest race he’s never won.

“The anxiousness of not winning the Derby, Epicenter’s close defeat last year, I think has heightened the want-to to do it,” he said. “There’s a reason why. There just is. I’m ridiculously optimistic, but you think, ‘What could have been better than Epicenter winning the Derby last year?’

“I’ve been fortunate enough to be in the Derby, but I haven’t been fortunate enough to win it. We’re not about to give up, so we’ll be OK.”

Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @KentuckyDerbyCJ.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Trainer Steve Asmussen, with Disarm, looks to win 2023 Kentucky Derby