Churchill Downs one week before the Derby and continues until early July. The Kentucky Derby is held the first Saturday in May and the Kentucky Oaks is run on the Friday before the Derby. A fall meet picks up in late October and closes Thanksgiving weekend in late November. A third meet in September was added in 2013. In addition to the track, clubhouse and stables, Churchill Downs also contains the Kentucky Derby Museum which focuses on the history of the Kentucky Derby and Churchill Downs. The museum also contains a number of exhibits exploring the training and racing of thoroughbred horses.
American Pharoah people around the horse. In the runup to the Belmont, Baffert chose to work the horse at Churchill Downs, and transport him late to Belmont Park without a timed workout at the New York track. While several prominent trainers questioned his decision, Baffert said it was more important to keep American Pharoah "happy" on a track he liked, having used a similar strategy with his 2001 Belmont Stakes winner, Point Given. Rival trainers Kiaran McLaughlin and D. Wayne Lukas backed Baffert's strategy; the former said, "I don't think it matters for American Pharoah. He could probably run down a street