If ever a horse race was up for grabs, it was the 1971 Kentucky Derby. Hoist The Flag, the heavy winter book favorite, shattered a leg a month before the big race. At least five other top contenders—His Majesty, Droll Role, Executioner, Run The Gantlet. Salem—dropped out because they were injured or were being saved for other races. With no clear-cut favorite in sight, trainers trotted out a string of long shots on the wild chance that one of them might have a good day. And wild it was, as an overcrowded field of 20, only two shy of the 1928 Derby record, stampeded out of the starting gates.
Given the size of the field, bettors needed a slide rule and a Ouija board to make any sense out of the odds. Eastern Fleet, for example, finished ninth in the Flamingo and then a few weeks later won the Florida Derby against substantially the same field. After running a woeful seventh in the Wood Memorial, Bold and Able won the Stepping Stone at Churchill Downs by three lengths. California-bred Unconscious, the betting favorite at post time, was unbeaten this year until an Eastern upstart named Jim French defeated him in the Santa Anita Derby. Impetuosity startled even his trainer when he won the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland two weeks ago. Among the several dark horses was an import from South America named Canonero II, the only horse on the track that had previously raced the 1¼mile Derby distance. But his prospects were dim, according to one tip sheet: “Canonero II. Unknown factor from Venezuela who just got out of quarantine. No horse from abroad has ever won the Derby and he doesn’t figure to make history. 100-1.”
History was made. Calumet Farm’s two entries, Bold and Able and Eastern Fleet, set the early pace. Jim French, moving out from the middle of the pack, was bumped so hard, Jockey Angel Cordero Jr. said later, “that I nearly fell off.” Far behind him, Canonero II moved from 18th position and streaked for the outside. At the final turn, Jockey Gustavo Avila cut around the fading front runners and booted Canonero II down the stretch to win going away by 3¾ lengths. Jim French finished second, two lengths ahead of Bold Reason. The Kentucky-bred colt, who was bought for a paltry $1,200 at the 1969 Keeneland yearling sales before being shipped to Venezuela, paid $19.40 and won $145,500, the largest purse in Derby history. An interpreter for Owner Edgar Caibett, a plumbing supplies manufacturer from Caracas, explained that Canonero means “gunner”—a fitting name for a long, long shot.
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