SATURDAY'S KENTUCKY DERBY SPECIAL THE MOST-WATCHED HORSERACING PROGRAM EVER ON ESPN

With 1,074,531 households tuning in, ESPN's Kentucky Derby Special last Saturday was the most-watched horseracing telecast in the network's history. The telecast also earned a rating of 1.31, making it the seventh-highest rated horseracing show ever on ESPN.

The program aired from 2:30-5:00 p.m. (ET) and included extended analysis and features on that day's Kentucky Derby, interviews with celebrities and live coverage of three stakes races on the Derby Day undercard at Churchill Downs in Louisville. Host Chris Fowler, analyst Randy Moss, commentator Jack Whitaker and reporters Jeff Medders, Jeannine Edwards, Gary Seibel and Sharlene Hawkes comprised ESPN's on-air team for the telecast.

The ESPN family of networks will again have an expanded array of programming leading up to the second jewel of horseracing's Triple Crown, the 126th Preakness Stakes, to be televised live from Baltimore's Pimlico Racecourse Saturday, May 19, from 5:00-6:30 p.m. (ET) on NBC. The ESPN Preakness-week lineup totals 13 1/2 hours and includes:

Date Network Air time (ET) Program

May 15 ESPN Classic 5:30-6:00 p.m. Thoroughbred Classics: The Preakness

May 16 ESPN 5:00-6:00 p.m. Preakness Post Position Draw

May 17 ESPN Classic 7:00-7:30 a.m. Thoroughbred Classics: The Preakness

May 18 ESPN Classic 9:30-10:00 a.m. Thoroughbred Classics: The Preakness

May 18 ESPN2 3:30-5:00 p.m. 2Day at Pimlico

May 18 ESPN 5:00-6:00 p.m. Black-Eyed Susan Stakes

May 18 ESPN Classic 5:30-6:00 p.m. Thoroughbred Classics: The Preakness

May 18 ESPN2 8:30-9:00 p.m. Handicapping the Preakness

May 19 ESPN2 9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Breakfast at Pimlico

May 19 ESPN2 1:30-3:00 p.m. 2Day at the Preakness

May 19 ESPN 3:00-5:00 p.m. The Preakness Special

The NTRA is a broad-based coalition of horseracing interests, including the American Quarter Horse Association, charged with increasing awareness of Thoroughbred racing and improving economic conditions for industry participants. The NTRA also conducts the Breeders' Cup, Thoroughbred racing's year-end Championship consisting of eight races and $13 million in purses and awards, and the Breeders' Cup National Stakes Program, which are funded by the industry's owners and breeders. The NTRA has offices in Lexington, Ky., and New York City. A compendium of NTRA press releases appears on the NTRA Web site, ntra.com, and at the Web site for the Breeders' Cup Championship, breederscup.com. Contact the NTRA at ntra@ntra.com.