Pennsylvania-born Angel of Empire shows third in 2023 Kentucky Derby. See race time

Angel of Empire — the Pennsylvania-born horse from Schuylkill County’s Blackstone Farm — stunned spectators at the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby, winning an exhilarating victory as he thundered down the track.

At the starting gate, Angel of Empire had promising morning-line odds at 8-1. But five scratches, including the favorite Forte, transformed the odds and dynamics of the race.

Angel of Empire was the only horse from Pennsylvania competing in this year’s Run for the Roses amid a field crowded by competitors native to Kentucky. Angel of Empire finished with an unofficial time of 2:01.57.

He finished behind winner Mage (15-1) and Two Phil’s (9-1), who placed second.

Bettors spent $9,919,625 in on-site, off-track and online wagers predicting Angel of Empire would finish in first place, according to the Kentucky Derby. Mage, the winning horse, received only $3,100,415 in win bets.

Angel of Empire’s jockey, Flavian Prat, has a track record of success, with a 2019 Kentucky Derby victory and 2021 Preakness Stakes win under his belt, as previously reported by the Centre Daily Times. Angel of Empire took to the field with the help of trainer Brad H. Cox, who had a total of four horses competing. The other three were Hit Show, Verifying and Jace’s Road.

Ahead of the Derby Saturday, owners Christian Black and Doug Black (no relation to each other) described Angel of Empire as a solid horse, telling WGAL in Lancaster about his good health and easy-going attitude.

Angel of Empire previously placed second in the Smarty Jones Stake at Oaklawn, dominated the Risen Star Stakes at Fair Ground in February and won tenaciously at the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn April 1. In total, he earned 154 points of the on the Derby leaderboard.

Here’s a look at the full field, plus its starting positions and odds at the starting gate:

1. Hit Show (24)
2. Verifying (14-1)
3. Two Phil’s (9-1)
4. Confidence Game (20-1)
5. Tapit Trice (9-2)
6. Kingsbarns (11-1)
7. Reincarnate (14-1)
8. Mage (16-1)
9. Skinner (SCRATCHED)
10. Practical Move (SCRATCHED)
11. Disarm (26-1)
12. Jace’s Road (32-1)
13. Sun Thunder (31-1)
14. Angel of Empire (7-2)
15. Forte (SCRATCHED)
16. Raise Cain (32-1)
17. Derma Sotogake (8-1)
18. Rocket Can (28-1)
19. Lord Miles (SCRATCHED)
20. Continuar (SCRATCHED)
21. Cyclone Mischief (27-1)
22. Mandarin Hero (18-1)
23. King Russell (31-1)

This story was originally published May 6, 2023 at 7:12 PM.

Aaron Mudd

Lexington Herald-Leader

Aaron Mudd was a service journalism reporter for the Lexington Herald-Leader, Centre Daily Times and Belleville News-Democrat. He was based at the Herald-Leader in Lexington, and left the paper in February 2026. Support my work with a digital subscription