Larry Birkhead is certainly one to keep tradition alive!
Each year, Birkhead takes his daughter Dannielynn, whom he shares with late model Anna Nicole Smith, to the Kentucky Derby, the place where he and Smith first met in 2003.
This year, he’s taken to Instagram to share some rare snaps of the special day.
“And We’re Off… to The 152nd @kentuckyderby with Dannielynn after an awesome Barnstable-Brown party last night,” he captioned the post.
The father-daughter duo wore matching black and white ensembles, with Dannielynn wearing a strapless Mac Duggal gown with a matching fascinator from The Hat Haven.
In a video from the event posted by Access Hollywood, Dannielynn was asked what she thinks her mum would think about her look.
She said she thinks her mum would like it, adding that “she was cool and I’m cool,” while Birkhead chimed in to ensure that “she’d love it”.
READ MORE: Aussie stars share exciting news following $150k heartbreak
READ MORE: ‘We just held each other’: Pip Edwards’ Bondi shooting ordeal
Birkhead and Smith met at the 2003 Kentucky Derby and kept their relationship largely private, welcoming Dannielynn in September 2006.
Just five months after giving birth, Smith died in February 2005, and Birkhead has raised Danielynn as a single parent ever since.
Last year’s Kentucky Derby was a special one for the father-daughter duo.
In May 2025, Birkhead shared on Instagram that at The Barnstable-Brown Derby Eve Gala – the celebration the night before the derby – Danielynn had chosen to wear her mum’s “iconic” dress from the same event.
“I can’t know my mom, sadly, and this is one of the only reasons and ways I can,” she told Access Hollywood at the event.
“This is the closest I’ll ever be getting to a hug from her, so I’ve been, like, on and off tears the whole day.”
FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest in celebrity, lifestyle and opinion via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.