So Happy's owners say they passed up millions before Kentucky Derby

USA Today·May 3

So Happy's owners say they passed up millions before Kentucky Derby

Updated May 3, 2026, 4:42 p.m. ETThe primary owners of So Happy told USA TODAY Sports they had a chance to cash in before the Kentucky Derby.Their choice looked like a potentially expensive one after the horse went off as the co-favorite at 5-1 before finishing ninth at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky Saturday May 2.After So Happy won the Grade I Santa Anita Derby April 4, clinching a spot in the Kentucky Derby, potential buyers reached out, according to Hans Maron, who along with his wife Ana are the primary owners of So Happy. Norman Stables LLC also owns a stake in the horse.Hans Maron indicated the top bid was for millions of dollars.Asked if the offer was for seven figures, he responded, "Multiple seven figures."But the Marons, who paid $150,000 for the horse, turned down the offer, according to Hans Maron."I don't want to give the amount because it's really not important," he said in an interview with USA TODAY Sports about a week and a half before the race. "And many people told us we should (accept it). That would be the rational thing to do. And I'm definitely not irrational."I just felt under the circumstances and