“It Was Toby’s Dream” – Toby Keith’s Render Judgment Represents the Late Singer Saturday

Many owners have dreams of roses on their minds when they invest in a yearling or two, visions of hoisting that gold trophy within the shadows of the Twin Spires following the Kentucky Derby (G1). Singer Toby Keith was among those, his Dream Walkin Farm buying into Render Judgment, a son of Claiborne Farm’s Blame, hoping to reach that elusive starting gate on the first Saturday in May.

Thanks to the points the colt earned on this year’s Road to the Kentucky Derby, Render Judgment will be breaking from post 15 in the Kentucky Derby, with a shot to make the late country music star’s dream come true.

Guitars and Saddles

Toby Keith released his debut self-titled album in 1993, with his first single “Should’ve Been a Cowboy” topping the Hot Country Singles chart. Over the next two decades, two dozen more albums brought him 20 number-one hits and 22 additional top-10 singles. Keith became a staple on both country and mainstream radio during his years in the spotlight. He later added screen credits in films like "Broken Bridges" and various commercials and late-night television shows. But his favorite place to be was on the rail watching his horses power home in his Dream Walkin Farm silks. 

Keith started buying horses to race in the late 1990s and added breeder to his resume soon after. The Oklahoma native stuck close to home and centered his racing in Texas, Arkansas, and his home state; his first horse, the Texas-bred gelding Jack Branch, broke his maiden first time out at Remington Park near Oklahoma City in December 1997. By 2001, he was racing under the banner of Dream Walkin Farms, located near Pauls Valley, Okla., where Keith kept several broodmares while also venturing to yearling sales during the middle rounds to pick up athletes. 

“I don’t want to buy a million-dollar horse and take him to the racetrack,” he told the Daily Racing Form in 2017. “I try to buy nice athletes, take them back, try to take good care of them, run them, and try to make everybody happy.”

In addition to his broodmare band, Keith also invested in several stallions, including Cactus Ridge, his homebred by Hennessey, who won the 2003 Grade 3 Arlington-Washington Futurity S. and was in the conversation for the 2003 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) before an injury ended his career that fall. Cactus Ridge went on to stand stud at Vinery and Calumet before going to Oklahoma to stand at Royal Vista Ranches. He also had shares in stallions Doctor Chit, second in the 2012 Grade 2 Amsterdam S.; Sebastian County, a stakes winner at Oaklawn Park; and Rattlesnake Bridge, who was second to Stay Thirsty in the 2011 Grade 1 Travers S. 

In 2022, a stomach cancer diagnosis prompted the country star to dial back on performing but did not keep him from the racetrack. Not only was he a long-time breeder and owner, but he was also a Breeders’ Cup ambassador and an enthusiastic ambassador for the sport. Fitting that the 2025 Kentucky Derby will feature Render Judgment, who will represent the late singer in the Run for the Roses.

Derby Dreams Come True

Trained by Kenny McPeek, who won last year’s 150th Kentucky Derby with Mystik Dan, Render Judgment comes into the big race with a record of 7-1-2-1 and $250,672 in career earnings. He debuted at Keeneland last October with a second behind Built, who would later win the Gun Runner S. at Fair Grounds. He got his first career win in his second start, a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight, finishing ahead of fellow Derby contender American Promise. To this point, Render Judgment has two in-the-money finishes in stakes, a third in the Gun Runner, and then a second behind American Promise in the Virginia Derby. 

Having a Derby starter had always been a goal for Keith, who said in 2019, “The Derby is the one you want to win. […] But, God, it’s hard to get there.” That Render Judgment will be running in this year’s edition is a tribute not only to the passion that brings people to Churchill Downs year in and year out, but also to Toby Keith, a country star who pursued roses as zealously as he made music.

Join us for our upcoming LIVE blogs!

May 1-3 | LIVE coverage of Thurby, Oaks, and Kentucky Derby Day with exclusive up-to-date all-access trackside coverage. LIVE race odds, including Kentucky Derby odds, picks, entries for all the races, and so much more!

Don't miss a minute of the fun with your backstage pass to everything Kentucky Derby!