Who are the trainers for Kentucky Derby 2026? Bob Baffert to Brad Cox
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A star-studded group of trainers will vie for victory May 2 in one of most iconic events in sports: the Kentucky Derby.
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This year's Run for the Roses includes a quartet of trainers who already have won the race on multiple occasions (Bob Baffert, Bill Mott, Doug O'Neill and Todd Pletcher). Two more trainers (Brad Cox and Gustavo Delgado) in the field at Churchill Downs have notched one Derby triumph. And then there are four trainers making their Derby debut: Cherie DeVaux, Mark Glatt, Manabu Ikezoe and Riley Mott.
In sum, 16 trainers are set to put horses in the starting gate on the first Saturday in May.
Here's a look at this year's trainer lineup:
Bob Baffert
Kentucky Derby horses:Litmus Test, Potente
Baffert will give it a go to win his seventh Derby. For the second time.
He initially captured Victory No. 7 in the Run for the Roses in 2021, when Medina Spirit crossed the line first. But that triumph was wiped away nine months later: Medina Spirit was disqualified after testing positive for betamethasone; officials then awarded the win to Mandaloun.
Even with that win no longer part of Baffert's official tally, he's tied for the most Derby victories by a single trainer, with his six putting him alongside the legendary Ben Jones. Baffert also holds all-time marks for Triple Crown wins by a trainer (17) and most Preakness Stakes victories (eight; 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2010, 2015, 2018 and 2023). He's one of only two men to train multiple Triple Crown thoroughbreds, joining James E. "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons. Baffert's first Triple Crown champion was American Pharoah in 2015, followed by Justify three years later. Fitzsimmons trained Gallant Fox in 1930 and Omaha in 1935.
Baffert only has 86 starts this year, but has made them count: He's won 30% of his races and boasts a win-place-show tally of 62 (26-11-15), as of April 25.
Whit Beckman
Kentucky Derby horse: Ocelli
Beckman had built quite a résumé before striking out on his own in 2021: He's worked as an assistant for Pletcher, Chad Brown and Eoin Harty.
Removing his debut season in which he had only five starts, Beckman is on pace for a career year in 2026. His win percentage (16%) and win-place-show rate (43%) this year would set single-season personal bests if they hold.
Beckman was a late entrant into Derby 152: His horse, Ocelli, got into the field after Fulleffort scratched April 30. It will be the third start in the Run for the Roses for Beckman, a Louisville native who graduated from St. Xavier High School. He hopes the third's time the charm: His prior entrants never made a run at a win, as Flying Mohawk finished 18th last year and Honor Marie placed eighth in 2024.
Chad Brown
Kentucky Derby horse: Emerging Market
Brown's never won the Derby, entering this year's race 0 for 9. Initially, he had had multiple opportunities May 2, sporting a pair of entries (Emerging Market and Iron Honor), but he decided to remove Iron Honor to focus the colt's efforts on the Preakness.
Brown's been close to Derby glory before, with a pair of runner-up finishes (Good Magic in 2018 and Sierra Leone in 2024). Emerging Market is 2-0-0 in two starts and emerged as the victor of a Louisiana Derby that included two other Derby starters (Pavlovian and Golden Tempo). Brown has two Triple Crown wins, both in the Preakness: Cloud Computing placed first in 2017, with Early Voting matching the feat five years later. He is fifth all-time in earnings among North American trainers, with winnings north of $330 million. He's finished first in earnings six times (2016-19, 2022 and 2024).
As of April 25, Brown has a winning percentage of 25% and a win-place show rate of 61% (49-30-38 in 193 starts) in 2026.
Brad Cox
Kentucky Derby horses: Commandment, Further Ado
This year marks the sixth straight Derby appearance for Cox, and for the fifth time in that span, he'll have multiple starters in the gate.
If Commandment or Further Ado come out on top this year, it will be Cox's second Derby victory – but his first at the track. Mandaloun was named the winner of the 2021 Run for the Roses more than nine months after the race ended following Medina Spirit's disqualification.
Cox is the top-earning trainer in North America this year, with more than $10 million in winnings, as of April 25. Cox boasts 103 victories and a win-place-show rate of 60% (100-70-45) in 364 starts in 2026. He sits eighth on the all-time earnings list, as he's won more than $234 million during his career.
Gustavo Delgado
Kentucky Derby horse: The Puma
Mage 2.0? There are eerie similarities.
Delgado also trained and was a part-owner of the 2023 Derby champion. Mage entered the Derby off a second-place finish in the Florida Derby. The Puma does the same this year. Delgado once more is the trainer and part owner; another leg of Mage's ownership group, OGMA Investments, has a share of The Puma. To top it off, The Puma's jockey, Javier Castellano, was aboard Mage three years ago.
Unlike other trainers he'll be up against May 2, Delgado is more selective with his North American race schedule; he hasn't had more than 200 starts in a calendar year since 2017, when Delgado had 222 starts. Delgado's win-place show percentage is 44% (4-5-5 in 32 starts) this year, as of April 25.
Cherie DeVaux
Kentucky Derby horse: Golden Tempo
DeVaux will be the 18th female trainer in Derby history, and the first since Vicki Oliver finished 13th with Hidden Stash in 2021.
Before she started training on her own in 2018, DeVaux worked for Chad Brown for eight years. DeVaux has finished among the top 20 in earnings among North American trainers each of the last two years. She has yet to win a Triple Crown race, but has one Breeders' Cup victory, winning the Breeders' Cup Mile in 2024 with More Than Looks. Her Derby entrant, Golden Tempo, is 2-0-2 in four starts, with a win in the Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes at Fair Grounds in January.
DeVaux has won 16% of her career starts, with a win-place-show rate of 43%. This year, she has a winning clip of 15% and a win-place show percentage of 43% (18-20-14 in 122 starts), as of April 25.
John Ennis
Kentucky Derby horse: Great White
An exercise-rider-turned-trainer, Ennis hails from Ireland.
Last year marked the best of his career since he started as a trainer in 2012. Ennis set personal-best marks for total earnings (nearly $3.3 million) and earnings per start (more than $13,000), per Equibase. He's won 13% of his career starts, owning a win-place-show percentage of 40. His year-to-date win percentage is also 13%, while his win-place-show rate is 34% (14-13-11 in 112 starts through April 29). Ennis' most successful racehorse to this point is Epic Ride, which won nearly $2 million and captured the Grade 3 Mint Millions Invitational Stakes at Kentucky Downs last September.
Epic Ride also was Ennis' last Derby entrant, placing 14th in 2024. Ironically, Ennis' Derby starter this year got into the Derby the same way as Epic Ride: because of a late scratch. Great White moved into the Derby 152 field after Silent Tactic scratched April 29.
"He’s still a baby, and he did not need to be on the lead (in the Blue Grass)," Ennis said of Great White, referring to the gray colt's fifth-place finish in the Blue Grass Stakes on April 4. "He was flat the week of the Blue Grass. Now he’s sharp and looks really good."
Mark Glatt
Kentucky Derby horse: So Happy
Glatt received his trainer's license in 1994. Since then, he's earned more than $57 million. But not only will this mark Glatt's Derby debut – it will be the first time he's ever had a thoroughbred in a Triple Crown race.
Glatt – and, by extension, So Happy – will have plenty of fan support in the Run for the Roses. That's because Glatt is working amid a tragedy in his personal life: His wife of 25 years, Deanna, died of heart failure Feb. 12. She was 57.
"It's without question the hardest thing I’ve ever had happen to me in my life," Glatt told Horse Racing Nation. "It’s even pretty hard still to put into words. You can't. You just can’t describe the loss."
While Glatt has never won a Triple Crown or Breeders' Cup race, he has three victories in Grade 1 events: two in the Bing Crosby Stakes (2020 and 2021) and this year's Santa Anita Derby, where So Happy outlasted Potente. Glatt's career winning percentage is 16%, while his win-place-show rate is 46%. He's well above those marks in 2026, winning at a 25% clip and a win-place-show percentage of 60% (28-17-23 in 113 starts), as of April 25.
Manabu Ikezoe
Kentucky Derby horse: Danon Bourbon
According to The Hong Kong Jockey Club, the sport is in Ikezoe's blood.
Per the site, Ikezoe's father, Kaneo Ikezoe, is a former trainer. His brother, Kenichi Ikezoe, is a jockey. Manabu's bio on The Hong Kong Jockey Club's website notes he "began working at Northern Farm before shipping to Ireland to work with Aidan O'Brien," a trainer who's in the QIPCO British Horseracing Hall of Fame. Ikezoe then joined his father's stable in 2006 before venturing out on his own in 2015.
This will be Ikezoe's first Derby appearance, but Danon Bourbon enters with plenty of momentum: He's 3-0-0 in three career starts, while his winning time (1:50.9) in the Fukuryu Stakes is the best in the history of the 27-year-old race.
"He has overcome the challenges of transportation and tight turns," Ikezoe said after the record-setting romp in the Fukuryu. "The fact that transportation was not a problem at all is a particularly good result."
Bill Mott
Kentucky Derby horse: Chief Wallabee
The elder Mott finally had his moment in the sun on Derby day – with no hint of controversy – last year.
Mott previously had won the Derby in 2019 via Country House, but that came to pass only after officials disqualified the initial winner, Maximum Security. The only dramatics in the 2025 Run for the Roses? The finish.
Mott-trained Sovereignty rallied to beat Journalism to the wire. Sovereignty reigned supreme again at last year's Belmont, marking Triple Crown victory No. 4 for Mott, who also won the 2010 Belmont with Drosselmeyer.
A Hall of Famer, Mott has more than $373 million in career earnings, which is fourth most all time among North American trainers. As of April 25, Mott has won 19% of his races this year to date, while his win-place-show rate sits at 48% (40-34-26 in 209 starts). Those rates mirror his career numbers across 29,276 starts.
Mott was a late entrant into this year's Derby, as Chief Wallabee moved into the field after Ottinho was pulled out of the Triple Crown's opening race. Chief Wallabee is 1-1-1 in three career starts, but still is searching for a graded-stakes win.
Riley Mott
Kentucky Derby horses: Albus, Incredibolt
The younger Mott has a long way to go to match his legendary father in terms of on-track success. But he's already bettered his father in one regard this year: Riley has two Derby entrants, one more than Bill.
This will be Riley's maiden Derby. He worked for his father for nearly a decade, then founded his own stable in 2022. He's improved his win total every year: Nine in his debut season, then 24 in 2023, then 36 in 2024 and 40 last year. So far this year, Riley has saddled 13 winners, as of April 19.
While he's still seeking his first triumph in a Triple Crown or Breeders' Cup race, Riley has two Grade 1 stakes victories (the Summer Stakes and Saratoga Derby last year). His two Derby starters, Albus and Incredibolt, have tasted success already. Albus is 2-0-1 in four starts, highlighted by a win in the Grade 2 Wood Memorial Stakes. Incredibolt is 3-0-0 in five races, with a victory at Churchill Downs last fall in the Street Sense Stakes.
Jeff Mullins
Kentucky Derby horse: Intrepido
More than two decades after his last Derby, Mullins is back with a horse in the Run for the Roses.
His starter was a late entry: Intrepido got in the field after Stark Contrast's trainer, Michael McCarthy, decided to run the thoroughbred in the Grade 1 American Turf instead of the Derby. Mullins' four prior Derby starts occurred in four consecutive years, from 2002 through 2005. Lusty Latin was 15th in 2002, Buddy Gil placed sixth in 2003, Castledale finished 14th in 2004 and Buzzards Bay took fifth in 2005.
In a career dating back more than four decades, Mullins has earned more than $65 million, per Equibase. He has a winning percentage of 21% and a win-place-show rate of 50% for his career. Mullins' racehorses have won 28% of their starts this year, finishing in the money 55% of the time, as of April 25.
Mullins has yet to pick up a victory in a Triple Crown or Breeders' Cup race, but he has numerous graded-stakes wins on his ledger.
Doug O'Neill
Kentucky Derby horses: Pavlovian, Robusta
O'Neill is no stranger to success in the Derby.
He's won twice previously, first in 2012 with I'll Have Another, then again in 2016 with Nyquist. If Pavlovian or Robusta takes first May 2, O'Neill will become only the seventh trainer in history to win the Derby at least three times.
Since Nyquist's victory, he's had three more starts in the Run for the Roses with hit-or-miss results. Hot Rod Charlie was runner-up in 2021, but Irap finished 18th in 2017 and Happy Jack wasn't so happy in 2022, taking 14th. O'Neill has five wins in Breeders' Cup races (two in the Juvenile, one each in the Dirt Mile, Spring and Filly & Mare Sprint), though none since Nyquist's Juvenile triumph in 2015.
Though O'Neill isn't yet in the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame, he's a finalist on this year's ballot. And though it's still early, 2026 is trending toward being his best-ever year as a trainer. He's won 21% of his races (42 for 196) as of April 25, which would set a personal mark dating back to 1998, the first year O'Neill had at least 100 starts.
O'Neill has won nearly $2.5 million in 2026, which is just outside the top 10 in earnings among North American trainers. He's 14th on the all-time list, with earnings of more than $175 million.
Todd Pletcher
Kentucky Derby horse: Renegade
Pletcher already has countless records to his name. He'll extend another when Renegade gets into the starting gate for this year's Derby as the 66th Derby entrant of Pletcher's storied career.
That's 15 more starters than any other trainer (The late D. Wayne Lukas had 51 thoroughbreds compete in the Run for the Roses). Pletcher is vying for his third Derby victory after wins with Super Saver (in 2010) and Always Dreaming (in 2017).
A Hall of Famer from Texas, Pletcher is the all-time earnings leader among North American trainers, having won more than $521 million, as of April 25. That's almost $30 million ahead of second-place Steve Asmussen at $493 million. Pletcher has won 19% of his starts in 2026, with a win-place-show clip of 45% (41-33-24 in 218 starts).
Bhupat Seemar
Kentucky Derby horse: Six Speed
Seemar has trained one prior Derby entrant in his career. He hopes the second time around goes better than the first.
His previous Derby horse was Summer Is Tomorrow, who competed in the 2022 Run for the Roses and finished last in the 20-horse field. Seemar's second Derby competitor is Six Speed. Unlike Summer Is Tomorrow, which had a win-place show record of 2-3-0 in seven starts prior to the 2022 Derby, Six Speed has never finished outside the money. In five starts, he has three wins along with a runner-up and a third place. Six Speed's signature victory to this point was the Grade 3 UAE Two Thousand Guineas, which tracks with his trainer: Seemer mainly works with thoroughbreds on the UAE circuit.
Hailing from India, Seemar didn't become a licensed trainer until 2021. Per Devaracing.com, Seemar moved to Dubai in his 20s, spending "many years as assistant to his uncle Satish – a multiple champion trainer in the UAE – before taking up the main role at Zabeel Stables." Before staking out on his own, Seemar worked for Baffert for five years.
The highest-earning horse Seemar has trained to this point in his career is Laurel River, which won nearly $7 million, highlighted by a triumph in the Grade 1 Dubai World Cup in 2024. Laurel River captured the Dubai World Cup crown in record-setting fashion, winning by 8½ lengths.
Daisuke Takayanagi
Kentucky Derby horse: Wonder Dean
This year marks Takayanagi's second Derby appearance.
In 2024, the Takayanagi-trained T O Password placed fifth in the Run for the Roses. Prior to T O Password's Derby showing two years ago, Takayanagi previously visited the Bluegrass State in 2017. Per Horse Racing Nation, Takayanagi traveled across the Pacific Ocean "to get an inside look at the training operations of Ben Colebrook, Dale Romans and Tom Amoss, among others."
His Derby entrant this year, Wonder Dean, won the Group 2 UAE Derby on March 28 at Meydan Racecourse, topping fellow Derby competitor Six Speed by 2½ lengths. Since 2000, thoroughbreds who race in the UAE Derby are 0 for 21 in the Run for the Roses, but Takayanagi is undeterred.
"Wonder Dean is developing physically and mentally all the time," he said, "and I am very excited about what he can do in the future."
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky Derby 2026 trainers include Bob Baffert, Brad Cox, Bill Mott