1970 Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Don Combs dies at 86

Don Combs, the trainer of 1970 Kentucky Derby winner Dust Commander who later added ownership to his racing career, died from a stroke Sunday morning in his native Lexington, Ky., according to Thoroughbred Daily News. He was 86.

Even though he never had another win as big as Dust Commander’s 15-1 upset 55 years ago under jockey Mike Manganello, Combs trained for more than 50 years until his final starter ran in 2019 at Turfway Park.

Flashback: Remembering Dust Commander’s Derby win.

A New York Times story less than a month after his Derby victory said Combs resigned as the colt’s trainer. He said owner Robert Lehmann “didn’t seem to trust my judgment” and that they had “a number of differences” including a disagreement over money.

Combs went to the University of Kentucky and was a reserve veteran in the U.S. Army.

Late in his career Combs had five horses stabled at The Thoroughbred Center in Lexington, according to a 2018 story in Louisville magazine. Equibase statistics say he had 441 winners from 3,697 starts with $6,967,337 in earnings.