The 2026 Kentucky Derby kicks off with early crowds and a wave of movie star arrivals at Churchill Downs.
Followers and VIPs step onto the grounds in daring trend, setting the scene as one of many 12 months’s largest sporting occasions will get underway.
Listed below are a number of the standout seems to be and excessive‑profile names noticed on the first leg of this 12 months’s Triple Crown.
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MAY 02: (L-R) Michael Turchin and Lance Bass attend the Kentucky Derby 152 at Churchill Downs on Might 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photograph by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Photos for Churchill Downs)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MAY 02: (L-R) David Burtka and Neil Patrick Harris attend the Kentucky Derby 152 at Churchill Downs on Might 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photograph by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Photos for Churchill Downs)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MAY 02: Melissa Joan Hart attends the Kentucky Derby 152 at Churchill Downs on Might 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photograph by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Photos for Churchill Downs)
Tony Offutt wears a Kentucky Derby hat whereas strolling within the infield on the 152nd Kentucky Derby in Louisville on Saturday, Might 2, 2026.
An attendee arrives to observe the 152nd working of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on Might 2, 2026. (Photograph by Leandro Lozada / AFP by way of Getty Photos)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MAY 02: 2026 Miss America, Cassie Donegan attends the Kentucky Derby 152 at Churchill Downs on Might 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photograph by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Photos for Churchill Downs)
Attendees arrive to observe the 152nd working of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on Might 2, 2026. (Photograph by Leandro Lozada / AFP by way of Getty Photos)
An attendee wears a humorous hat in the course of the 152nd working of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on Might 2, 2026. (Photograph by Leandro Lozada / AFP by way of Getty Photos)
A girl attends the 152nd working of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on Might 2, 2026. (Photograph by Leandro Lozada / AFP by way of Getty Photos)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MAY 02: Dave Portnoy attends the Kentucky Derby 152 at Churchill Downs on Might 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photograph by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Photos for Churchill Downs)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – MAY 02: Brian Quinn attends the Kentucky Derby 152 at Churchill Downs on Might 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photograph by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Photos for Churchill Downs)
Polly Owens of Harrodsburg, Ky., reveals her derby model close to the paddock at Churchill Downs, Saturday, Might 2, 2026 in Louisville Ky.
