Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde makes his 2022 Kentucky Derby horse picks

Associated Press

Normal Kentucky Derby: Capacity crowd, big hats, mint juleps

The Kentucky Derby is the next major sporting event to move a step closer to normalcy after two years of upheaval adjusting to COVID-19 restrictions. After fluctuating dates and crowds, Churchill Downs will welcome everybody without restrictions on Saturday, raising hopes of getting back to 150,000 or more beneath the Twin Spires. If attendance and participation around Louisville and other major sporting events such as the Super Bowl, Final Four and Major League Baseball games are any indication, the atmosphere for the first jewel in horse racing’s Triple Crown should have a pre-pandemic feel, though masks are optional.