Bill Mott: 2026 Kentucky Derby Trainer Profile

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott has come a long way since he won the South Dakota Futurity at Park Jefferson at the age of just 16, while he was still in high school. He hung his own shingle for good in 1978 after spending time working with Hall of Famer Jack Van Berg. Over the last almost five decades, he won the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer five times, training some of the best horses of the modern era.

Mott’s most famous horse remains the great Cigar, who won 16 straight races, including the inaugural Dubai World Cup, and was named Horse of the Year in both 1995 and 1996. He has 16 Breeders’ Cup wins, starting with Fraise in the 1992 Breeders’ Cup Turf and most recently with Scylla in the 2025 Breeders’ Cup Distaff. His most dominant year at the Breeders’ Cup was 2023, when Cody’s Wish repeated in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, Elite Power repeated in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, and Just F Y I took the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.

Befitting a trainer of Mott’s stature, he has an illustrious history in the Triple Crown, as well.

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Bill Mott in the Kentucky Derby

Bill Mott ran his first horse in the Kentucky Derby in 1984: Taylor’s Special, who ran 13th behind Swale. Mott did not return for Churchill Downs’ signature race until 1998, when he ran eighth-place Favorite Trick and 14th-place Rock and Roll. Mott has run 14 horses in the Derby so far, and his best have come in the more recent years of his career.

Half of his runners – seven of 14 – have been since 2018. Mott got his first Kentucky Derby victory in 2019 with 65-1 long shot Country House, who crossed the wire second but was elevated to the win when Maximum Security was disqualified for interference. He also trained the show horse that year, Tacitus.

Mott’s second Kentucky Derby victory could not have been more different from his first. Sovereignty wasn’t the favorite, but he was still well supported in the market after a solid runner-up finish in the Florida Derby. He emerged as a star when he rolled home late for a confident victory over favored Journalism.

Bill Mott in the Triple Crown

Bill Mott has not made a habit of bringing horses to Pimlico Race Course for the Preakness. He has run just two horses in the second jewel of the Triple Crown: Taylor’s Special was fourth in 1984, and Riley Tucker was 12th in 2008. Notably, Mott never pointed either of his Kentucky Derby winners to the Preakness: Country House because he got a cough, and Sovereignty because he wanted to ship him up to Saratoga Race Course and get him ready for the Belmont.

Mott has started 10 horses in the Belmont Stakes, winning the final jewel of the Triple Crown twice. Drosselmeyer turned the tables on Fly Down in 2010 after that foe had beaten him in the Dwyer four weeks before. Sovereignty thrived on the five-week break after the Kentucky Derby, beating Journalism even more convincingly than he had at Churchill Downs five weeks before. Mott has trained three other money finishers in the Belmont: Vision and Verse was the runner-up in 1999, Tactitus ran second in 2019, and Hofburg was third in 2018.

2026 Kentucky Derby Contender Chief Wallabee

Bill Mott has one contender in the 2026 Kentucky Derby: Chief Wallabee. After he ran a close third in the Florida Derby (G1) he was on the bubble, but by mid-April, enough horses had defected in front of him that Chief Wallabee had a guaranteed spot at Churchill Downs. Chief Wallabee was already getting plenty of Derby buzz even when he was on the also-eligible list, and the chance for a decent post has only bolstered the enthusiasm.

Three-Year-Old Season

Chief Wallabee did not race as a two-year-old. He made his debut on January 10 at Gulfstream Park, in a seven-furlong sprint that also featured the debut of another horse who has emerged as a serious Kentucky Derby contender: The Puma. Chief Wallabee, the 5-2 second choice behind The Puma that day, got the best of him: he stalked the pace and finished best in the lane, getting up by 1 ½ lengths.

The maiden win earned Chief Wallabee a ticket to the Derby trail in the 1 1/16-mile Fountain of Youth (G2), his first try at two turns. He chased toward the rear of the compact group of nine early, rallied into the lane, and got into a battle with favored Commandment. Commandment got to the wire first by a neck, but Chief Wallabee proved that he didn’t have to be so close to the pace and that he could keep fighting when challenged.

Mott kept Chief Wallabee at Gulfstream Park for his final prep, the Florida Derby. With Commandment, The Puma, and Holy Bull (G3) winner Nearly lined up in the gate as well, it was the deepest prep of the Kentucky Derby trail. And, Chief Wallabee made good account once again. He reverted to his stalking style. The Puma moved first, and though he was narrowly outkicked by eventual nose winner Commandment, he was making up ground late and crossed the wire third, only half a length behind Commandment and The Puma.

Bill Mott has a reputation for being cautious, so the fact that he has run Chief Wallabee up the class ladder so quickly suggests he sees something special. And, the horse keeps delivering. It’s also a good thing that he’ll be partnered with Junior Alvarado. Alvarado has been in the irons for Chief Wallabee’s starts so far, and he has ridden so many of Mott’s recent stars, including Cody’s Wish, Scylla, War Like Goddess … and Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty.

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