When the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby begins in Louisville on Saturday, May 3, country music fans may want to pay attention to one particular longshot.
Late entrant Render Judgment is owned by the late country singer Toby Keith‘s Dream Walkin’ Farms. By running on Saturday, the colt will fulfill Keith’s longtime dream, more than a year after he died at age 62 from stomach cancer.
A post to the late singer’s Instagram account on Saturday, April 26, confirmed Render Judgment’s spot in the greatest two minutes in sports.
“Render Judgment is going to the @kentuckyderby,” the caption read. “He worked so hard to finally have one there! Toby will have the best seat in the house to watch.”
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Keith spoke of having a horse run the Kentucky Derby in a 2019 interview posted to the Derby’s Facebook account.
“That’s the one that everybody wants to hang on their wall and say, ‘I won the Kentucky Derby,’” Keith said. “But God, it’s hard to get there. I guess that’s the most frustrating part about this business, is that you work so hard to get that one horse.”
With post time at the 2025 Kentucky Derby set for 6:57 p.m. ET, keep scrolling for everything to know about Render Judgment and Keith’s passion for horse racing.
1.Toby Keith Was An Avid Horse Racing Fan
Trainer Bret Calhoun, who worked with Keith at Dream Walkin’ Farms (based out of Oklahoma), revealed just how big a fan the “Beer For My Horses” singer was in an interview with America’s Best Racing, days after Keith died.
“He would try to work his schedule where he could be at some of the races whether he was playing concerts and get to fly in,” Calhoun said. “He would always try to make it to some of the bigger races.”
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Calhoun added that Keith took pride in his horses.
“If you look at his operation as a whole, I think he just wanted to enjoy them as much as he could,” he said. “He had big numbers. He had them at all different levels. Everybody always wants good horses and I think that mattered to him. But I just think he enjoyed having action. He liked numbers and action.”
2. Having a Horse in the Kentucky Derby Was Keith’s ‘Dream’
Toby’s daughter, Krystal, took to Instagram on Sunday, April 27, to share her excitement for Render Judgment. In the caption, she explained that it was her dad’s dream to have a horse in the Kentucky Derby.
“My dad dreamed of having his horses in the Kentucky Derby for over 30 years,” she wrote. “Here he is still making his dreams come true from his castle in the sky. Our horse Render Judgment made it yesterday just hours before the post position drawing.”
She continued, “My dad could never decide which passion was greater, music or horse racing. He could have had a PhD in horse pedigrees. What an incredible journey we’ve been on to get here. Win or lose, he made it to the Derby and that for me is everything. Give ‘em hell RJ!
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3. Another One of His Horses Won Him Nearly $1 Million
Though Render Judgment is the first Kentucky Derby horse to come out of Dream Walkin’ Farms, he is far from the only big winner. Toby’s thoroughbred Smack Smack netted him $986,419 in his career, placing first in the 2016 Grade 3 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap at Prairie Meadows Racetrack.
4. Render Judgment Is a Longshot to Win Kentucky Derby
Render Judgment will enter the Derby with 30-1 odds to win, tied with eight others for the longest odds in the field. But don’t be discouraged — just three years ago, Rich Strike became the second-biggest underdog winner ever, taking the Kentucky Derby despite 80-1 odds. Three years before that, Country House won with 65-1 odds. Never say never.
5. Render Judgment’s Trainer Won Last Year’s Derby
Render Judgment enters the field with derby-winning experience by his side. The horse’s trainer, Kenneth McPeek, won the Kentucky Derby last year with Mystik Dan. In fact, McPeek has won each of the three Triple Crown races in his career.
