There was no bigger surprise victory among the horses on this list than Proud Clarion, which paid $62.20 on a $2 win bet, still eighth most in Kentucky Derby history. Proud Clarion was in fifth place at the quarter pole, 3 1/2 lengths off the lead. He passed early pace setter Barbs Delight just past the eighth pole to take control of the race.

Post position matters quite a bit at the Kentucky Derby. Horses in the earlier post positions have traditionally performed better than horses in the later post positions at the event. The fifth post position has resulted in the most wins at the Kentucky Derby, with 10 horses winning from that slot during the race's history.