LOUISVILLE, Ky. – This being 2018, Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux can celebrate several Kentucky Derby anniversaries. It was 30 years ago (1988) that Desormeaux, then a teenaged phenom from Louisiana by way of Maryland, rode in his first Derby and finished 16th on longshot Purdue King. It was 20 years ago (1998), aboard Real Quiet, Desormeaux notched his first of three Derby victories. And it was 10 years ago (2008) that Desormeaux got his third and most recent Derby triumph when Big Brown wore the roses. On Saturday, Desormeaux hopes to create another meaningful Derby memory in a year ending in “8” when he gets a leg up on My Boy Jack from his older brother, trainer Keith Desormeaux, in the 144th Derby at Churchill Downs. “I can still remember the chipped paint on the bars of the gate in front of me when Purdue King walked in,” Desormeaux, now 48, said recently by phone from California. “And I can still hear the roar of the crowd. We beat one horse, and I remember riding for my life to stay in front of him because I didn’t want to be last.” :: Get both the Kentucky Derby and Oaks Clocker Reports for just $19.95! Winning with Real Quiet, his seventh Derby ride, gave him what he described as probably his greatest thrill on a racetrack. “I can remember every stride of the trip,” he said. “I’d been keeping my eye on Gary Stevens [on favored Indian Charlie], and when I went to go past him, I didn’t even need to encourage the horse. He just took off, and I remember Stevens saying, ‘Go get ‘em, Mo.’ And we did. “The Fish,” as Real Quiet was nicknamed by trainer Bob Baffert, “ran all the way to the wire with a full head of steam. I almost went into shock the last four or five strides. It all slapped me in the face and I was like, ‘Oh man, what just happened?’ I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry – I think I did both. It was a very emotional event, realizing the dream you’d had as a boy.” He stayed much calmer in his next two Derby wins, on Fusaichi Pegasus in 2000 and eight years later on Big Brown. “FuPeg was an armchair ride, much the best, and I would consider myself a Kentucky Derby veteran at that point,” he said, while Big Brown “probably was one of the best horses I’ve ever ridden in my whole career, just a tremendous athlete. I’d say I was more relieved than anything when we won because he was a big favorite and anything besides a win would’ve been disappointing.” Desormeaux will now ride for his brother in the Derby for the third straight year after finishing second in 2016 on Exaggerator and 16th last year on Sonneteer. The Desormeauxs are just one of three known jockey-trainer brother combinations in Derby history – and the only one with multiple starts – following Jimmy and Nick Combest (Mr. Moonlight, 1964) and Randy and Gerald Romero (Dixieland Heat, 1993). “I really think Exaggerator was one of my Derby wins that got away,” said Desormeaux, who will be riding in the Derby for the 22nd time, tied for third-most all time. “We got slammed at the three-eighths pole and it cost us a chance. I’d like to redeem for that. There’s nothing I’d like to do more than win the Derby for Keith.” My Boy Jack, owned by the three-way partnership of Don’t Tell My Wife Stables, Monomoy Stables, and West Point Thoroughbreds, is one of the stretch runners in the Derby field. The Creative Cause colt won the Southwest Stakes and Lexington Stakes among his four starts this year. “I think there are four or five horses that on paper are supposed to beat him,” Desormeaux said. “But this is the Kentucky Derby. There are a lot of variables in play, like none of them have gone a mile and a quarter. “The styles a lot of these other horses have shown ... I think they’re going to have to keep each other company up front. If they don’t, the race might be given away to one of them. But I think every jock in the room is going to know that, so it’s not going to be given away. The rivalries up front, that could really help us. It should be very honest, very contentious. “I’ll repeat what my brother said – he’s got to have the fittest horse in the race. So we’ll go in liking our chances and hoping for some racing luck.”