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Golden Tempo Wins 2026 Kentucky Derby

When will I learn?  I should know by now to check the field before the running of the Kentucky Derby, to determine a winner and place a hefty bet.  With both Rich Strike, in 2022 (at 80-1 odds) and Mystik Dan, in 2024 (at 18-1), a preliminary peep at the equine charts and Race Day could have netted me a packet!  In 2026, the pattern repeated, but I still hadn’t learned my lesson. 

The 152nd annual running of the Kentucky Derby on 2 May 2026 saw Golden Tempo first over the finish line at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.  Ridden by jockey Jose Ortiz in his first Derby victory, the 23-1 longshot edged out second place Renegade, ridden by Ortiz’ brother Irad, the 4-1 favorite.  The victory was also unusual in that Golden Tempo’s trainer, Cherie DeVaux, became the first female to train a winning horse.  Golden Tempo’s owner, Daisy Phipps Polito, is also female, though not the first to own a Derby victor.

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A mid-race fraternal handclasp as brothers Jose (left) and Irad Ortiz approach the finish line neck-and-neck; asteroid Ortizmorena (closest to Ortiz) squared asteroid Nike (Greek goddess of victory) made it a safe bet that one of the Ortiz brothers would win, but a T-Square formed with Ortizmoreno’s opposition to a stationary asteroid Golda gave the nod to the rider of Golden Tempo

Asteroid Golden 4423 at 2 Aries conjoins Neptune at 3 Aries and opposes asteroids Jose 1423 and Vaux 28118 (at 5 and 6 Libra respectively), in a T-Square with asteroid Swift 5035 at 11 Cancer.  Neptune is the Roman version of the Greek god Poseidon, noted as the mythic creator of horses, while the asteroids involved denote the horse itself (Golden), the rider (Jose) and the trainer (Vaux, for DeVaux).  Swift, of course, refers to the primary attribute for a winning racehorse.

A preponderance of “winning” asteroids points to females as victorious on the day, in Golden Tempo’s trainer and owner.  Asteroid Nike 307 at 23 Scorpio, named for the Greek goddess of victory, conjoins the Moon at 26 Scorpio, a traditional female marker, while asteroid Victoria 12 at 13 Gemini, named for Nike’s Roman counterpart, conjoins Venus at 10 Gemini, also relating to females.  In specific, asteroid TRIUMF 14959 at 4 Virgo, named for an acronym of a Canadian science research facility, but acting as its phonetic match “triumph,” an unqualified success, appears conjoined asteroid Cherryh 7185 at 7 Virgo), approximating trainer Cherie DeVaux.

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Cherie DeVaux became the first female trainer whose horse won the Derby; asteroid Nike conjunct the Moon, and asteroid Victoria conjunct Venus, suggested a female victory generally, but asteroid Cherryh conjunct asteroid TRIUMF denoted Cherie specifically

Additional variations of “golden” add further insights.  Asteroid Gold 4955 at 1 Leo conjoins the 27 Cancer MC for the 6:57 PM EDT post time of the race, as the highest-elevated point in the chart, the focus of all eyes.  As well, asteroid Golda 606701 at 28 Leo conjoins TRIUMF at 4 Virgo, with both points embedded at station, indicating a pivotal moment for a gold-related entity, about to achieve a startling victory.    Golda/TRIUMF also opposes asteroid Fast 27719 at 2 Pisces, in a T-Square with asteroid Champion 8732 at 9 Sagittarius, bringing in the elements of swiftness (Fast) and winning (Champion).

Foaled on 7 February 2023, Golden Tempo has a remarkable birth chart, similar to prior longshot Derby winners Rich Strike (1) and Mystik Dan.  The 18 Aquarius Sun is conjoined by asteroid Jose at 10 Aquarius and opposes asteroids Rosa 223 at 13 Leo, Fast at 24 Leo and Pulido 66843 at 25 Leo, identifying the jockey (Jose Ortiz), the winning venue (Rosa, with the Kentucky Derby commonly referred to the “the Run for the Roses,” after a floral garland draped about the neck of the equine victor), the quality of swiftness (Fast) and the owner (Pulido, cognate to Daisy Phipps Pulito).  This polarity is part of a Grand Cross, with squares to Uranus at 15 Taurus, the planet most associated with rapidity and record-setting, and a pairing of asteroids Vaux at 13 Scorpio, for trainer Cherie DeVaux, and TRIUMF at 22 Scorpio. With so much of his destiny as a Kentucky Derby winner bespoke by the cosmos at his birth, astro-savvy racecourse bookies might have done well to give him better odds.

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Golden Tempo was a born Derby winner, with the Sun in a Grand Cross with Uranus (speed) and asteroids Fast, TRIUMF, and Rosa (with the Kentucky Derby known as “the Run for the Roses”); also part of the mix – asteroids Jose and Vaux, for rider Jose Ortiz and trainer Cherie DeVaux

Golden Tempo’s winning speed is further displayed as asteroid Golden at 8 Virgo, in a Grand Cross with asteroids Swift at 2 Sagittarius and Nike at 0 Pisces, plus Mars at 10 Gemini, conferring energy, vitality and staying power.  A pairing of asteroids Champion and Gold at 5 and 11 Capricorn opposed asteroid Victoria at 4 Cancer, in a T-Square with Jupiter at 7 Aries, doubly nominates Golden Tempo as a winner (Champion, Victoria), lucky on the racecourse (both ruled by Jupiter).

Transits to Golden Tempo’s birth chart include asteroid Fast at 2 Pisces conjoined natal asteroid Nike at 0 Pisces, in a T-Square with natal Swift at 2 Sagittarius; transit TRIUMF at 4 Virgo conjunct natal Golden at 8 Virgo; transit Victoria at 13 Gemini squared natal Golden at 8 Virgo; transit Nike at 23 Scorpio conjunct natal TRIUMF at 22 Scorpio; and transit Swift at 11 Cancer conjoined natal Victoria at 4 Cancer.  That’s a lot of “speedy victory” energy!

Jockey Jose Ortiz seems destined for Derby greatness as well, and specifically with this horse.  Born 2 October 1993 (no time available), his 9 Libra Sun conjoins asteroids Gold at 8 Libra and Downs 24027 at 5 Libra, with the former a nod to the primacy of Golden Tempo to his self-image, and the latter a reference to the Churchill Downs venue for the Kentucky Derby.  An opposition to a pairing of asteroids Nike and TRIUMF at 6 and 11 Aries seals the deal on his victory. 

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Jockey Jose Ortix exults in his victory; a transit T-Square of asteroid Golden opposed asteroid Jose, with asteroid Swift on the fulcrum, tells the tale of his win, while a natal opposition from the Sun conjunct asteroid Gold to a pairing of asteroids Nike and TRIUMF prefigures an impressive victory with Golden Tempo

The Sun is also trine to a stationary asteroid Victoria at 4 Gemini, making “winning” an essential component of his biography, and is exactly sesquiquadrate a precise paring of Saturn with asteroid Rosa at 24 Aquarius, establishing the Run for the Roses (Rosa) as pivotal to his career arc (Saturn).

A combination of asteroids Ortizmoreno 4436 (closest to Ortiz) and Champion at 1 and 9 Leo suggests his victory, while Pluto at 23 Scorpio conjunct asteroids Golden and Fast at 28 Scorpio and 1 Sagittarius alludes to the transformative effect (Pluto) of Golden Tempo’s (Golden) speed (Swift) in his life.

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Owner Daisy Phipps Pulito may well smile as she hoists the trophy, which just brought her roughly 80% of the $5 million purse the Derby offers; asteroid Pulido (closest to Pulito) conjoined the Sun for the win, and opposes the Sun in Golden Tempo’s birth chart

His close association with trainer Cherie DeVaux is signaled by a union of asteroids Jose and Cherryh at 22 and 25 Sagittarius, squared on Race Day by transit Derbes at 23 Pisces.  This duo forms a Grand Trine Kite pattern with trines to asteroids Golda at 24 Aries (another referent to Golden Tempo) and Vaux at 29 Leo (another referent for Cherie DeVaux), with the String provided by Vaux’s opposition to Saturn/Rosa.

A natal opposition from Derbes at 13 Taurus to asteroids Pulido and Swift at 11 and 12 Scorpio links Golden Tempo’s owner (Pulido, for Daisy Phipps Pulito), the venue (Derby) and his mount’s speed (Swift).  The transit Sun at 12 Taurus for the race highlights this connection in real time.

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The Fun with the Roses; the Kentucky Derby is justly renowned for the headgear sported by fans, male and female alike; asteroid Cappellitto (Italian for “little hat”, though these are hardly small!) lies at the Apex of a Yod with the Sun and asteroid Derbes, closest to Derby

We don’t know what Golden Tempo’s future holds.  Only thirteen Derby winners have gone on to take the Triple Crown, also winning the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, so his chances for total victory are slight.  But as for myself, with three missed opportunities to cash in big, just call me the winner of the Triple Frown. 

Notes: (1) Golden Tempo and Rich Strike are essentially cousins, both descended from grandsire Smart Strike, sire of Curlin, Golden Tempo’s sire, and Gold Strike, Rich Strike’s dam.

Title Image Credit:  drawn by Chat GPT

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Alex Miller is a professional writer and astrologer, author of The Black Hole Book, detailing deep space points in astrological interpretation, and the forthcoming Heaven on Earth, a comprehensive study of asteroids, both mythic and personal. Alex is a frequent contributor to “The Mountain Astrologer”, “Daykeeper Journal”, and NCGR’s Journals and “Enews Commentary”; his work has also appeared in “Aspects” magazine, “Dell Horoscope”, “Planetwaves”, “Neptune Café” and “Sasstrology.” He is a past president of Philadelphia Astrological Society, and a former board member for the Philadelphia Chapter of NCGR.

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