Churchill Downs Churchill Downs Churchill Downs, located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, is a Thoroughbred racetrack most famous for annually hosting the Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875, and held the first Kentucky Derby and the first Kentucky Oaks in the same year. Churchill Downs has also hosted the renowned Breeders' Cup on nine occasions, most recently on November 2 and 3, 2018. Churchill Downs Incorporated owns and operates the racetrack. With the infield open for the Kentucky Derby, the capacity of Churchill Downs is roughly 170,000. In 2009, the Horseplayers Association of North America introduced a
Churchill (horse) Awards. In the official European Classification of two-year-olds for 2016 Churchill was given a rating of 122, making him the best juvenile of the season, one pound ahead of the filly Lady Aurelia and four pounds ahead of the colts Thunder Snow and National Defense. In the 2017 World's Best Racehorse Rankings, Churchill was rated the twelfth-best horse in the world and the joint-best horse in Ireland. Churchill (horse) Churchill (foaled 31 January 2014) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse. He was rated the best two-year-old colt in Europe in 2016, winning five of his six races including the Chesham Stakes,