The most significant surprise in the 112-year chronicle of the Louisiana Derby was undeniably an improbable victory.
Hero of Order approached the 2012 Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds having competed in 13 races with a sole triumph to his name, guided by an obscure Russian trainer, ex-jockey Gennadi Dorochenko, who lacked any prior graded stakes wins.
This dark bay or brown colt, sired by Sharp Humor, had achieved his only previous success before the $1 million Louisiana Derby in a three-quarter-mile maiden special weight event on January 7 at Fair Grounds, a venue where he had already competed eight times during that particular season at the New Orleans course. Dorochenko acquired him for $3,000 during the 2010 Keeneland September yearling auction.
Faint indications of promise emerged from this narrative’s protagonist: he briefly held the lead in the Lecomte Stakes before dropping to fifth, narrowly missed winning an allowance sprint by under a length, dictated the early tempo before concluding fourth in the Risen Star Stakes, and secured a second-place finish in the Black Gold Stakes on turf, only to be later disqualified to fourth. Hero of Order demonstrated a degree of competitiveness under a non-traditional trainer who prioritized actual races over training sessions.
“They don’t compensate you for practice runs. What benefit does a workout provide?” Dorochenko questioned in a post-Louisiana Derby discussion with BloodHorse. “Having been a jockey my entire life, I’ve spent it alongside horses. One can transform a simple bicycle into a high-performance Ferrari. I demonstrate my expertise.”
The 2012 Louisiana Derby attracted 14 entrants, which was ultimately trimmed to 13 by the starting gate. Hero of Order began the race with the longest odds among all contenders at 109.40-1 – with Flashy Sunrise, a 68.10-1 longshot, being the next highest – making it a profound astonishment when Dorochenko’s trainee suddenly performed like a meticulously engineered Italian sports car.
Hero of Order maintained a position several lengths adrift of the frontrunner, Comisky’s Humor, also an underdog, along the backstretch. He then seized control on the final turn and established a decisive advantage in the initial part of the homestretch. Mark Valeski, part of a favored pairing, made a late charge but failed to narrow the gap to less than half a length, as jockey Eddie Martin Jr. piloted the most astonishing victory in the Louisiana Derby’s existence.
The Pick 3 wager concluding with the Louisiana Derby yielded $105,930 to a sole successful participant, and the 50-cent Pick 4 distributed $203,358 to one triumphant ticket, with Hero of Order returning $220.80 on a $2 bet to win.
“Achieving victory in a million-dollar event profoundly alters one’s existence,” Dorochenko remarked to BloodHorse. “My practice isn’t to acquire pricey equines. Instead, I procure affordable horses and elevate their value.”
Hero of Order was not initially entered for the 2012 Kentucky Derby, yet he did participate in a subsequent Triple Crown preparatory race, the Blue Grass Stakes, where he ended up in thirteenth place. He failed to win any of his subsequent 10 outings following the Louisiana Derby, with his top performance being a second-place result in the Iowa Derby that June.
Dorochenko’s Raut Farm utilized Hero of Order as a breeding stallion, and he produced 23 victors from 41 competitors, among them the multiple stakes-placed champion Sharp Hero. However, Hero of Order’s enduring fame, without a doubt, will stem from orchestrating the most monumental surprise in the Louisiana Derby’s past. Not every hero dons a cloak — some are modest bikes that metamorphose into powerful Ferraris at Fair Grounds.
