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Tuesday, May 13, 2025
HomeHorse Racing IndustryTitle: Record-Breaking Viewership for Kentucky Derby 151: Influencer Griffin Johnson Captivates a...

Title: Record-Breaking Viewership for Kentucky Derby 151: Influencer Griffin Johnson Captivates a New Generation


LEXINGTON, Ky. — More eyes saw the 151st Kentucky Derby than any other run for the roses in nearly 40 years. According to NBC, this year’s Kentucky Derby averaged 17.7 million viewers, the highest since 1989.

What You Need To Know

  • Ratings for Kentucky Derby 151 were the highest for NBC since 1989, including record streaming numbers on Peacock.
  • This year, Influencer Griffin Johnson had a horse, Sandman, in the Derby.
  • Johnson has 9.7 million followers on TikTok and shared his and Sandman’s journey on social media.
  • America’s Best Racing aims to grow the sport of horse racing, focusing heavily on Gen Z fans.

America’s Best Racing, founded in 2012, aims to grow the sport of horse racing to all fans, and this year the organization had one of its biggest reaches yet through TikTok.

Among the thousands of faces at this year’s Kentucky Derby, one of the youngest was in the owner’s box; Influencer Griffin Johnson.

“This is probably the most prestigious thing you can do in horse racing, especially just getting to the Kentucky Derby. Being able to go on the track and be with the horses is special,” Johnson said.

Leading up to and throughout the Derby, Johnson brought the world of horse racing to his nearly 10 million followers on TikTok and millions more on other social media platforms. In partnership with America’s Best Racing and West Point Thoroughbreds, Johnson was given minority ownership in Sandman.

“The whole thought with a program like Stake in Stardom is gifting a minority interest to an influencer, a media personality, an athlete, and then they are personally invested in that thoroughbred racehorse,” Rachel Miller, digital marketing manager at America’s Best Racing, said.

Miller oversees the Stake in Stardom program. In the past, it has worked with sports media personalities, including NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Miller said through social media, the 26-year-old Johnson reached a new Generation Z audience. Gen Z is anyone born between 1997 and 2012.

“Our conservative estimate is that he probably drove hundreds of thousands of people to watch that otherwise would have not,” Miller said.

According to Miller, the Stake in Stardom program posts got over 268 million impressions, including over 111 million views. The America’s Best Racing page alone had 76,058,165 video views.

Through his videos, Johnson gave his followers a peek into the life of owning and training a thoroughbred on the biggest stage of all. Miller said Sandman also became a celebrity and followers’ favorite.

“That’s the thing with social media. Everybody thinks that something that they watch or see online they think oh that’s me, that’s my horse too. All of the comments are this is our horse; Sandman won our hearts,” Miller said.

Miller said the goal of America’s Best Racing is growing the audience and making it more inviting.

“The sport that has the most compelling stories, it’s not athletes playing for themselves, it’s a horse that represents a whole team of people,” Miller said.

Former Kentucky State Senator, now horse racing industry consultant Damon Thayer, met Johnson during Derby Week. Thayer said Johnson is a great addition to the horse racing scene.

“It’s great to see the Gen Z group make their way to the races in greater numbers,” Thayer said. “I think it’s a really positive sign.”

Thayer said while kids like his who grew up in Kentucky may be accustomed to horse racing, many across the nation may have seen the race through Johnson for the first time.

“I think a lot of these influencers like Griffin and his contemporaries are getting younger people interested in horse racing and in turn are watching the broadcast on NBC or streaming it on Peacock,” Thayer said.

Inspiring a new generation of racing fans.

“Anyone watching this if it’s your first time, if it’s your hundredth time, I just want to say thank you for supporting and this is the best sport in America,” Johnson said.

Johnson is originally from Paris, Illinois, which is about 90 miles west of Indianapolis.

As for Sandman, his team announced on May 9, he would be running in the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, May 17.

The 151st Kentucky Derby achieved its highest viewership in nearly 40 years, averaging 17.7 million viewers, according to NBC. This surge in interest was bolstered by record streaming numbers on Peacock and the involvement of social media influencer Griffin Johnson, who owned a horse named Sandman. Johnson, with 9.7 million TikTok followers, shared his journey in horse racing, significantly engaging a younger audience.

America’s Best Racing, an organization focused on expanding the sport’s appeal, partnered with Johnson through its Stake in Stardom program, which gives influencers a minority stake in racehorses. This initiative aims to attract Generation Z fans, and Johnson’s social media presence reportedly drove hundreds of thousands of viewers to the Derby. His content provided a relatable glimpse into the world of horse racing, making it more accessible and inviting.

Industry experts, including former Kentucky State Senator Damon Thayer, noted the positive impact of influencers like Johnson in drawing younger audiences to horse racing. As a result, the Derby not only celebrated its rich traditions but also inspired a new generation of fans, with Johnson expressing gratitude for their support and enthusiasm for the sport. Sandman is set to compete in the upcoming Preakness Stakes, continuing the excitement surrounding this year’s Derby.

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Title: Join the Preakness Stakes Social Media Storm: Raise Your Voice Against Horse Racing Cruelty


How to use this Tweet Sheet:

Copy and Paste the following Social Media Posts for the Preakness Stakes Social Media Storm Event Saturday, May 17, 2025 – 5 pm to 7 pm ET. Be a voice for the horses!

Social Media Storm Help: Copy and Paste the individual pre-written posts to all of your social media accounts. You can find photos on the Horseracing Wrongs official event page to use with your posts. Feel free to participate on Facebook, Instagram, X, Threads, TikTok. Be Creative and don’t forget to keep and use the hashtags!

Tips for X (Twitter): You may Retweet, however making new tweets with the tweets (posts) below will help the message spread farther, faster! Please use as many or ALL tweets on this list! If a tweet doesn’t fit you can make a small adjustment, just be sure to keep the hashtags in the posts!

The Tweets/Social Media Posts:

Over 2000 Horses are killed each year for gambling and entertainment! #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horseracing is Animal Cruelty and Kills Horses. Boycott the Belmont Stakes! #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Over 2,000 horses Die EACH year racing or training on American tracks. Horseracing is NOT a Sport. Horseracing KILLS! #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horseracing is Animal Cruelty. Horseracing KILLS Horses! Don’t Watch. Don’t Bet. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Most “retired” American racehorses are bled-out and butchered in foreign abattoirs. One final profit on their heads. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Racehorses are injected w/ various drugs – some legal, some not – with a singular goal: to keep them running, even through pain & injury. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

What happens openly @ the track would qualify as #AnimalCruelty if done to our pets. In what other sport do lashes provide the motivation? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horses killed at U.S. tracks, 2023: https://horseracingwrongs.org/killed-2023/ #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horses killed at U.S. tracks, 2021: https://horseracingwrongs.org/killed-2021/ #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horses killed at U.S. tracks, 2022: https://horseracingwrongs.org/killed-2022/ #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horses killed so far this year for $2 bets: https://horseracingwrongs.org/killed-2022/ #EndHorseracing #Preakness

The typical horse does not reach full musculoskeletal maturity till around 6 years old; the typical racehorse begins “training” @ 18 months & is raced at 2 years old – or the rough equivalent of a kindergartner. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

No more bets, no more races; no more races, no more kills. And – no more abusing unformed bodies; No more maiming, destroying; pain, suffering. NO MORE! #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horseracing a sport? If not for the gravity involved, it would be absurd. No, horseracing is but exploitation of a weaker species for among the most shameful of reasons – $2 bets. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

“Carnage,” as defined by the American Heritage Dictionary, is “large-scale death and destruction.” This is what is happening in the American horseracing industry. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In what other sport are the bodies of adolescent athletes pounded into the ground without remorse? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In what other sport are the athletes kept in tight, solitary confinement for over 23 hours a day? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In what other sport are the athletes condemned to a life as (literal) chattel? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In what other sport are the athletes drugged and doped without consent? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In what other sport are the athletes whipped – beaten – for motivation? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In what other sport are the athletes routinely dying on the playing field? Over 2,000 a YEAR! #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In what other sport are the athletes brutally and violently slaughtered upon retirement? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

To those who trade in equines in the pursuit of cash and fleeting glory, we say: Find a commodity that doesn’t bleed; take up a hobby that can’t cry out in pain. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horseracing is but exploitation of a weaker species for among the most shameful of reasons – $2 bets. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

To those who sustain this sordid business, we say: Slake those gambling urges with decidedly inanimate slots and scratch-offs; leave the horses out of it. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Most racehorses are bought and sold several times over during the course of their so-called careers – traded and treated like common Amazon products. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

What happens openly at the track would qualify as animal cruelty if done to our pets. What’s more, in what other sport do lashes provide the motivation? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horseracing Wrongs @racingwrongs estimates that over 2,000 horses die at U.S. racetracks annually. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Most “retired” American racehorses are bled-out and butchered in foreign abattoirs. One final profit on their heads. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Most active racehorses are kept isolated in tiny stalls 23 hours a day, making a mockery of the industry claim that their horses are born to run, love to run. No affection, no stimulation – just an existence. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

To those who wager on horseracing, we implore you to reconsider. And ultimately, you hold all the cards – no more bets, no more races; no more races, no more kills. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

In a landscape that abounds with other gambling options – casinos, lotteries, real sports involving autonomous human beings – hasn’t the time at long last arrived to let the racing horse be? #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Maiming and destruction of racehorses is inherent to the industry. Death at the track is, always has been, and always will be an inevitable part of racing. #EndHorseracing #Preakness

Horseracing is Animal Cruelty: https://horseracingwrongs.org/whats-wrong-with-horseracing/ #EndHorseracing #Preakness

How they die: Lady Angel – “collapsed while training with copious amount of blood coming out of both nostrils” #EndHorseracing #Preakness

How they die: Greatwhite Buffalo – “both front fetlocks attached by skin only, leaving the distal cannon bones exposed, covered with ground-in dirt and severe bruising; gastric ulcers quite extensive” #EndHorseracing #Preakness

The Death of a Racehorse: Tempting Eyes – “horse caught reins in rail and snapped neck” #EndHorseracing #Preakness

How they Die: Cool It – “euthanasia due to shock from large laceration with arterial bleeding” #EndHorseracing

Preakness

If horseracing is a sport…

In what other sport are:

THE BODIES OF ADOLESCENT ATHLETES POUNDED INTO THE GROUND WITHOUT REMORSE?

EndHorseracing #BelmontStakes

If horseracing is a sport… In what other sport are:

THE ATHLETES KEPT IN INTENSIVE SOLITARY CONFINEMENT FOR OVER 23 HOURS A DAY?

EndHorseracing #Preakness

If horseracing is a sport… In what other sport are:

THE ATHLETES DRUGGED AND DOPED WITHOUT CONSENT?

EndHorseracing #Preakness

If horseracing is a sport… In what other sport are:

THE ATHLETES WHIPPED AND BEATEN – FOR MOTIVATION?

EndHorseracing #Preakness

If horseracing is a sport… In what other sport are:

THE ATHLETES ROUTINELY DYING ON THE PLAYING FIELD?

EndHorseracing #Preakness

If horseracing is a sport… In what other sport are:

THE ATHLETES BRUTALLY & VIOLENTLY SLAUGHTERED UPON RETIREMENT?

EndHorseracing #Preakness https://horseracingwrongs.com/?s=slaughter

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