the Kentucky Derby

The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival.

The United States of America, commonly referred to as the United States or America, is a federal republic composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions.

The Kentucky Derby Festival is an annual festival held in Louisville, Kentucky during the two weeks preceding the first Saturday in May, the day of the Kentucky Derby.

Kentucky, officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state located in the east south-central region of the United States.

2015 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands by Kentucky Derby

The race is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of one and a quarter miles at Churchill Downs.

Churchill Downs, located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby annually.

2014 Kentucky Derby - California Chrome + Post Race by Horse Racing

Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds and fillies 121 pounds.

A gelding is a castrated horse or other equine, such as a donkey or a mule.

The race is known in the United States as "The Most Exciting Two Minutes In Sports" or "The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports" for its approximate duration, and is also called "The Run for the Roses" for the blanket of roses draped over the winner.

A rose is a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus Rosa, in the family Rosaceae, or the flower it bears.

It is the first leg of the American Triple Crown and is followed by the Preakness Stakes, then the Belmont Stakes.

The Preakness Stakes is an American flat thoroughbred horse race held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland.

The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York.

Unlike the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, which took hiatuses in 1891–1893 and 1911–1912, respectively, the Kentucky Derby has been run every consecutive year since 1875.

A horse must win all three races to win the Triple Crown.

In the 2015 listing of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities, the Kentucky Derby tied with the Whitney Handicap as the top Grade 1 race in the United States outside of the Breeders' Cup races.

The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982.

The Whitney Stakes is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of  1 1⁄8 miles.

The attendance at the Kentucky Derby ranks first in North America and usually surpasses the attendance of all other stakes races including the Preakness Stakes, Belmont Stakes, and the Breeders' Cup.

The 2017 Kentucky Derby will be the 143rd running, and is set for Saturday, May 6, 2017 with a $2 million guaranteed purse.