The rocker headlined the 11th Annual Unbridled Eve Kentucky Derby Gala shortly after the docuseries, ‘Thank You, Goodnight,’ dropped

Bailey Richards is a writer-reporter at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2023 and interned with the brand in 2022. Her work has previously appeared in digital publications like Paper Magazine and TV Insider.

Richie Sambora at the Kentucky Derby in Louisville on May 4, 2024. PHOTO: DANIEL BOCZARSKI/GETTY

Richie Sambora is sharing his thoughts on the new Bon Jovi docuseries.

Over the weekend, the former Bon Jovi guitarist, 64, stepped out for the first time since the Hulu docuseries, titled Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story, dropped on April 26, to headline the 11th Annual Unbridled Eve Kentucky Derby Gala at The Galt House Hotel.

Following his performance at the annual event, in which he auctioned a guitar off for charity, the rocker spoke with PEOPLE about the series, saying that he felt it did not tell his story, but rather that of his former bandmate Jon Bon Jovi.

“It’s his project and it’s his perspective. I have a different perspective on all of that,” Sambora says of the project, which features interviews with him, as well as former and current Bon Jovi members such as frontman Jon, 61, keyboardist David Bryan and drummer Tico Torres, as well as former collaborators and management.

The four-part series was directed and executive produced by Gotham Chopra. Jon is not credited as a producer.

Richie Sambora performs onstage at the 11th Annual Unbridled Eve Kentucky Derby Gala at The Galt House Hotel on May 3, 2024.DANIEL BOCZARSKI/GETTY

During his chat with PEOPLE, the legendary guitarist also reflected on his gala performance, calling it “really good” but “too f—ing short!”

“I only had 23 minutes, but I blew the roof off the place,” he says of the set, which included just two songs: Bon Jovi classics “Wanted Dead or Alive” and “I’ll Be There for You.”

During the auction, Sambora noted, “We got $32,000 for the guitar for charity.”

The rocker also spoke about his new music, stating that “everybody’s loving” it, which he explained “makes me so happy.”

Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora performing together in Los Angeles in September 1989.MICHAEL OCHS ARCHIVES/GETTY

Before the premiere of Thank You, Goodnight, which included discussion of Sambora’s highly publicized exit from the band in 2013, Jon revealed that he and the guitarist watched some of it together.

“He came over and watched three parts of the docuseries at my house,” Jon told PEOPLE last month, adding, “There’s never animosity.”

The Bon Jovi frontman also shared that “there was nothing but love” when Sambora left the band to focus on raising his daughter Ava, now 26, amid his divorce from ex Heather Locklear.

“There was never a fight,” the singer said. “Ultimately being in a rock band is not a life sentence. He had to deal with his other issues.”

Bon Jovi performing live on June 23, 1995.DAVE HOGAN/GETTY

In March, a source told PEOPLE that “Richie and Ava are very close,” adding that she “means everything to him and always has.”

The source said Richie took advantage of the extra time he had after leaving the band to spend more time with Ava.

“He would drive Ava to school,” said the insider. “She had been going through a lot and he was there for her. He would wake up in the morning and make her breakfast.”

Richie Sambora with daughter Ava Sambora in April 2018.MIKE COPPOLA/GETTY IMAGES FOR THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME

Sambora also opened up about Ava being one of the main reasons he decided to leave the band in the docuseries.

“She needed me, and I needed here. Truthfully. We didn’t have enough time,” he said his now-26-year-old daughter. “Things gang up on you, and I was dealing with that, as well as being a part of one of the biggest bands in the world.”

“The band was stale at that point, and my job was to say that,” Sambora added.

Thank You, Goodnight is currently available to stream on Hulu.