Donna Brothers, an integral part of NBC´s Kentucky Derby coverage since it acquired the rights to the race in 2001, will step down after this year’s race.
From speaking to trainers and owners on the walkover to the paddock to interviewing the winning jockey on horseback, Brothers has been front and center for some of the most emotional moments of NBC´s horse racing coverage.
But Saturday will be Brothers’ final Run for the Roses. She decided two years ago that this would be her last year, but did not announce it publicly until last week.
‘I told Lindsay Schanzer, our producer, that I definitely wanted to make it to Kentucky Derby 151 because that would be my 25th Kentucky Derby,’ said Brothers, who turned 60 on April 22.
‘But if I had my druthers, I would also like to make it to Derby 152 because then I’ll be 60 years old and I’ll feel like Ive earned the right to retire. So now I have two careers behind me. I retired from being a jockey in 1998.
‘There are a lot of people, when I tell ’em I’m going to retire, they seem sad for me. And they’re like, “Oh, I know you’re going to miss it.” And I don’t think that’s going to be the case. I’ve had the second-best seat in the house for 26 years, and I really believe that. I think the best seat in the house is whoever rode the Kentucky Derby winner.’
Donna Brothers will step down from NBC’s Kentucky Derby coverage after this year’s race
Brothers is a former jockey who won 1,130 races during her 11-year career.
She joined NBC in 2000 for Breeders’ Cup coverage and has been part of the network’s Triple Crown coverage. NBC has had the Preakness Stakes since 2001 and the Belmont Stakes from 2001-05 and 2011-22.
She was the first to interview jockeys Victor Espinoza aboard American Pharaoh in 2015 and Mike Smith on Justify three years later, after they won the Triple Crown.
‘Very rarely do you get to work in TV with people who define a role in sports television, and Donna has done that,’ said Mike Tirico, who will anchor NBC´s coverage.
‘The immediate reaction Donna gets race after race, and her observations are such a unique part of what we do in television. And she is one of a kind. Somebody will follow her but will not replace her because she’s irreplaceable.’
