SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – “From the outset, the Kentucky Derby has been great theater,” Daily Racing Form columnist Joe Hirsch wrote in May 2003. “H.P. McGrath’s Chesapeake was considered the one to beat in that first Derby on May 17, 1875, but broke poorly and never gained position. Fortunately for McGrath and the backers of his stable, McGrath had a pacemaker in the race. Aristides broke alertly, went to the front, and remained there most of the way to win by two lengths. The Little Red Horse was the toast of the turf.” Nearly a century and a half later, Justify won the Derby en route to sweeping the 2018 Triple Crown. On Friday, in a year in which the Kentucky Derby celebrated its 150th anniversary, Aristides and Justify will be inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, with the other toasts of the turf among this year’s class of nine inductees including Hirsch, who so ably chronicled so many editions of America’s most celebrated race. Justify and fellow Horse of the Year Gun Runner, along with jockey Joel Rosario, make up this year’s contemporary class who will be inducted in a ceremony beginning at 10:30 a.m. at Fasig-Tipton’s Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion, just down East Avenue from the main gate of Saratoga Race Course. As always, the induction ceremony is free and open to the public, and new and returning Hall of Famers make it one of the sport’s unique opportunities to rub elbows with greatness. :: Gain a competitive edge at Saratoga with DRF's premier handicapping data — purchase our meet packages today and bet with confidence. Hirsch, Clement L. Hirsch (no relation), and Harry Guggenheim, were chosen for induction by the Hall’s Pillars of the Turf Committee. Thoroughbreds Aristides and Lecomte and jockey Abe Hawkins were selected for induction by the Pre-1900 Historic Review Committee. Justify is one of racing’s two recent Triple Crown winners, as he followed American Pharoah in 2015, who ended American racing’s longest drought between Triple Crown winners at 37 years. “Will we ever have a Triple Crown winner again?” Hirsch questioned in 2003, after Funny Cide’s bid for the Triple Crown was thwarted; the columnist retired later that year. “It is one of the most difficult feats in all of sports because it requires so much skill and so much luck. It will happen, and we will enjoy it more because we can appreciate what is involved.” For Justify, the feat involved breaking another drought, as he became the first Derby winner since Apollo in 1882 to claim the classic without racing as a 2-year-old. Justify, who was trained by Bob Baffert for China Horse Club, Head of Plains Partners, Starlight Racing, and WinStar Farm, crossed the wire first in all six of his starts in a career that spanned only 111 days. That, of course, was highlighted by his sweep of the 2018 Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes in a championship campaign. Gun Runner, trained by Steve Asmussen for Winchell Thoroughbreds and Three Chimneys Farm, had a longer career, winning 12 of 19 starts, including 10 graded stakes, and earning more than $15.9 million from September 2015 to January 2018. Gun Runner finished second to fellow Hall of Famer Arrogate in the 2017 Dubai World Cup, then never lost another race, ripping through Grade 1 triumphs in the Stephen Foster, Whitney, Woodward, Breeders’ Cup Classic – which cemented his 2017 Horse of the Year title – and finally, the Pegasus World Cup. Rosario, through Tuesday, has 3,633 career victories and career purse earnings of more than $322 million, according to Equibase statistics. His earnings rank fourth all-time among North America-based jockeys. Rosario has won 427 graded stakes, with 116 Grade 1 wins, including the 2013 Kentucky Derby aboard Orb, and two editions of the Belmont Stakes aboard Tonalist (2014) and Sir Winston (2019). Rosario has won 15 Breeders’ Cup races, tied for fourth at the event, including two runnings of the Classic, with Accelerate (2018) and Knicks Go (2021). The Pillars of the Turf recognize game-shaping contributions, and Hirsch is the first journalist so enshrined. Hirsch wrote for the Form for nearly half a century; he was the paper’s executive columnist from 1974 until his retirement, and was known for his “Derby Doings” reporting. He died in 2009. “I feel I’m the luckiest feller in the world,” Hirsch wrote in his final column for the Form. “I fell in love with racing 50 years ago and have had the glorious opportunity of making it my life’s work.” Hirsch, known as one of the great ambassadors of the sport and a mentor to multiple generations of aspiring turf writers, was the founding member and first president of the National Turf Writers Association – now the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters. Among his scores of honors, he received both an Eclipse Award for outstanding newspaper writing (1978) and an Eclipse Award of Merit (1992) for a lifetime of service. In addition to press venues and races named for him, the National Museum of Racing created the Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor in 2010, recognizing distinguished careers in turf media. It was announced last December that Dick Jerardi, Paul Moran, and John L. Hervey are this year’s honorees. Prominent owner Clement L. Hirsch is best remembered as a co-founder and president of the Oak Tree Racing Association, which annually conducted a fall meet at Santa Anita. He earned a Special Eclipse Award in 1999. He died in 2000. Guggenheim, a prominent owner, breeder, and industry leader, is best known for his Dark Star, the 1953 Kentucky Derby winner and only horse to defeat Native Dancer. Guggenheim also owned champion Bald Eagle and Hall of Fame member Ack Ack. Guggenheim, along with Hall of Fame members John W. Hanes and Christopher T. Chenery, outlined a plan for a non-profit to reorganize New York racing in the 1950s, which eventually led to the creation of the New York Racing Association. Guggenheim died in 1971. This year, the Museum’s Historic Review Committee considered only candidates from before 1900. It will review other time periods in the coming years. Aristides, trained by Hall of Famer Ansel Williamson, is best known for his inaugural Derby win, but also won the Withers Stakes, finished second in the Belmont, and was third in the Travers. Aristides is retrospectively acknowledged as the champion 3-year-old male of 1875. Churchill Downs underwent extensive renovations this year prior to the 150th Kentucky Derby. Now, the life-sized bronze statue of Aristides, by Carl Regutti, stands near the main gate of the track, where it is appropriately framed beneath the twin spires, outside of the new paddock. The other historic review equine inductee, Lecomte, had a record of 11-4-1 from 17 starts when races were decided in multiple heats. He is known for a victory over the great Lexington, handing that Hall of Famer his lone defeat in the Jockey Club Purse, done in consecutive four-mile heats. Hawkins was aboard Lecomte for that win. The jockey, who raced in the pre- and post-Civil War years, was the first Black athlete to gain national prominence. He also won the Travers aboard Merrill. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.