[1] The 5th Kentucky Derby was run on a fast track with a field of nine horses, including the notable racer and future leading sire Falsetto.
Lord Murphy was knocked almost to his knees by Ada Glenn on the first turn, but managed to pull himself up from 7th to 1st place at the mile marker to win over the fast approaching Falsetto.
[2] Lord Murphy was bought soon after his Derby win by horseman James R. Keene, who promptly shipped him overseas to the British racing circuit.
[5] He acquired a "savage" temper[6] and became a "roarer", an ailment that Keene thought developed secondary to the change in weather between the United States and England.
[8] He was later sold at a British public auction in Newmarket on July 6, 1881, the horse fetching a small sum of 10 guineas ($50).