Kentucky Derby 2024: Stewards call Gaffalione to video review

Tyler Gaffalione has been ordered to a video session with stewards Thursday to review his homestretch ride on runner-up Sierra Leone and the contact he made with third-place finisher Forever Young near the finish of Kentucky Derby 2024.

"Following the race, the stewards ordered Tyler Gaffalione, jockey aboard Sierra Leone, to film review on (Thursday)," a Kentucky Horse Racing Commission spokesperson said in a written statement. "The stewards conduct film reviews routinely to review the conduct of jockeys during a race. The stewards in their discretion can take disciplinary action against a jockey following the review."

"This is routine practice," Gaffalione's agent Matt Muzikar said Monday afternoon. "They do this all the time."

Head-on video of the finish showed Gaffalione to the outside on Sierra Leone reaching to his left and maintaining contact for about two seconds with jockey Ryusei Sakai on Forever Young. According to agent Matt Muzikar, Gaffalione lost his balance as he tried to keep Sierra Leone from drifting inward as they approached the finish line.

The two horses finished a nose apart chasing Mystik Dan, who was racing along the rail to the inside en route to winning by a nose over Sierra Leone. Mystik Dan, ridden by Brian Hernandez Jr., was not involved since he made no contact with either horse as his lead was dwindling.

Stewards routinely took nearly four minutes to examine the finish-line photo and post the order of finish and then, not so routinely, another seven minutes to declare the race official. There were no objections and no inquiry.

"The stewards review every race in Kentucky live and by video replay before posting it official, and they followed the same procedure for the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby," the KHRC spokesperson's statement said. "After conducting their standard review of the race, determining no further review or investigation was necessary to conclude there were no incidents that altered the finish of the race, and seeing there were no objections filed, the stewards posted the Kentucky Derby official."

Muzikar said Monday a closer review of the video showed Sakai initiated contact with Gaffalione's left boot, knocking him off balance. Forever Young's racing manager conceded the two horses were in a physical battle the length of the homestretch.

"They were fighting together all the way, not just at that moment," Hiroshi Ando said Sunday. "When they got to the top of the straight, they were fighting all the way to the wire. This is racing."

The KHRC statement did not say whether Sakai also was summoned for a video review. The commission spokesperson was asked about that but had not yet responded Monday afternoon. Even though he was on his way back to Japan on Sunday, Sakai could have been asked for his input directly or through a representative.