Fiesta Friday
Derby scratches, Brady smashes and why this weekend packs a punch.
Kentucky Derby and Cinco de Mayo? Could be the best weekend ever.
Celebrate good times,
The Last Night’s Game Team
Kentucky Derby
The talk of the town is that the favorite going into the Derby, Omaha Beach, has been scratched from the race for breathing issues. The new favorite horse for Saturday’s race? Game Winner. But do you know how race horses get their names? We have that (and the racy names that somehow made it past the censors) in our “Five Things You Need to Know About The Kentucky Derby.” PONY UP
Want to learn more about the confusing win, place, show of horse betting? Make sure to tune into our Instagram story tomorrow as we break it down in this week’s “Sports Curious Question of the Week.” YOU CAN BET ON IT
Overtime
Jimmy Kimmel and Matt Damon have a longstanding beef with each other and now they’ve brought Tom Brady into it. Brady was back in his home state of California to work out at UCLA and he stopped by “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” The two decided to prank Matt Damon in a smashingly good skit. JUST AN ORDINARY DAY IN HOLLYWOOD
sideline stat
Major League Baseball (MLB) is celebrating Cinco de Mayo by going to Mexico. The Los Angeles Angels and Houston Astros will be taking their show on the road to play their weekend series in Monterrey, Mexico. This will be the one of three series in Mexico for MLB teams this season. TOO BAD CINCO DE MAYO ISN’T A HOLIDAY IN MEXICO…
Coaches’ corner
Seeking a Kentucky Derby tradition like no other? How about boxing? That’s right, it has become a tradition for a huge boxing match-up to follow the Kentucky Derby on Cinco de Mayo weekend. This weekend, Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez will face Daniel Jacobs in the ring. THOSE MINT JULEPS ALSO PACK A PUNCH
What to watch
The Women’s World Cup is this summer and we now know the 23 women who will take the field to defend the U.S.A.’s title. Leading the charge are household names like Alex Morgan and Carli Lloyd. The tournament will take place in France in June where the American women will start off playing Thailand. GAME CHANGING GALS
Pony Up - 5 Things You Need To Know About The Kentucky Derby
Ponies, booze and fashion, oh my!
The Derby may be the greatest day in sports because you get to wear great hats, drink mint juleps and the whole event is over in two minutes.
Short is sweet,
The Last Night’s Game Team
1. The Derby is often referred to as the “most exciting two minutes in sports” because that’s how long it takes for the horses to run the 1¼ mile track. TIME YOUR BATHROOM TRIP RIGHT OR YOU’LL MISS THE WHOLE RACE
2. The favorite horse heading into Saturday’s race, Omaha Beach, was scratched this week before most people could even place their bets. There are a whole slew of rules set forth by the Jockey Club to abide by when naming a horse. Of course, nothing racy is approved but names like Hoochiecoochiemama, Bodacious Tatas and Hardawn (say it aloud) have slipped past the reviewers. WE’D PAY TO HEAR ANNOUNCERS READ THOSE NAMES ON TV
3. The horses are all three-year-old males. You’ll never see a horse win the Derby twice because they’re only allowed to race when they’re three and that’s it. The horses (and their jockey) are competing for the largest-ever guaranteed purse of $3 million, an increase of $1 million from last year. PEAKING EARLY IN LIFE
4. Ever wonder how these high-priced horses get from one race to another? Air Horse One. No, really. They fly on a Boeing 727 cargo plane nicknamed “Air Horse One.” It’s equipped with stalls built around the horse and even inflight snacks. AND YOU THOUGHT BUSINESS CLASS WAS EXPENSIVE
5. We’d be remiss if we didn’t discuss the hats. The long-standing tradition started with a goal to have high-class spectators attend the race. The Derby hat as we know it, didn’t come around until the 1960s when fashion norms loosened up and big, bright and festive were socially acceptable. THE BEST CELEBRITY DERBY HATS
Watch the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, May 4th live from Churchill Downs at 6:50 EST.
BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE
Stallions aren’t the only thing to talk about today, here are the top three hottest topics in sports including how U.S.A Gymnastics continues to be a hot mess, why one basketball player is literally the sh*t and an iconic sports magazine is no more. READ
5 Things You Need To Know About The Kentucky Derby
The Derby is the one time of year it’s perfectly acceptable to dress up in a hat as large as a small country to go bet on ponies and drink excessively.
The Kentucky Derby is the one time of year it’s perfectly acceptable to dress up in a hat as large as a small country to go bet on ponies and drink excessively.
We bet it’s what everyone is talking about,
The Last Night’s Game Team
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE KENTUCKY DERBY
1. The horses are all three-year-old males. You’ll never see a horse win the Derby twice because they’re only allowed to race when they’re three and that’s it. Talk about peaking early in life.
2. The mint julep has been the official cocktail of the Derby since 1938. The drink is typically made with Early Times Whiskey and over 120,000 juleps are sold every year at the Derby.
3. The Derby is often referred to as the “most exciting two minutes in sports” because that’s how long it takes for the horses to run the 1 ¼ mile track. You better time your bathroom trip right.
4. The high fashion wasn’t always a requirement but the dress code was updated way before any of us were born in an effort to attract high end spectators. The big ‘ol Derby hats became a thing in the 1960s when fashion norms loosened up and bright, big and festive were socially acceptable. FASHION FAVS
5. Two horses to watch. Purchased for a mere $3 million, Mendelssohn looks to become the first European-based horse to win the Derby. The favorite to win this year’s Derby? Everyone’s placing their cold hard cash on Justify. Ever wonder how they name a horse? There’s a whole slew of rules but one of note – names may not exceed 18 characters including spaces. (The race is only two minutes long…you have to help the announcers out somehow). RULES
Watch the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, May 5th live from Churchill Downs at 6:30 EST.
But wait there’s more
The Derby isn’t until Saturday, so here’s how you can strike up a conversation today by talking about what women’s sports leagues are doing that is unprecedented, what caused Drake to cross the (side)line at a basketball game and why is it called the triple crown? READ