Justify takes his place in the history books
Justify, who didn’t race as a two-year-old, proved Saturday he couldn’t be worn out as a three-year-old, thundering to victory in the Belmont Stakes to claim a place in history as the sport’s 13th Triple Crown champion.
After a 37-year drought in which the feat seemed impossible, Justify became the second horse in four years to achieve it, schooled, like his 2015 predecessor American Pharoah, by hall of fame trainer Bob Baffert.
Before Saturday’s Belmont Stakes, which Justify won by 13/4 lengths over Gronkowski, the massive chestnut colt with the white blaze had won the Kentucky Derby by a 21/2-length margin.
Two weeks later, Justify weathered torrential rain and a blanket of fog to win the Preakness Stakes, setting himself up for the Triple Crown bid. All that remained was to prove he had the toughness and resolve to conquer the longest, most gruelling leg of the Triple Crown — the Belmont Stakes.
On Saturday, Justify did just that before a rapturous crowd of 90,327, leading wire to wire to cover the 11/2-mile distance in two minutes 28.18 seconds with hall of fame jockey Mike Smith aboard.
Justify ’s dominance moved Baffert, 65, to tears afterward as he became only the second trainer to win two Triple Crowns (along with the late James (Sunny Jim) Fitzsimmons, whose triumphs came in 1930 and ’35 with Gallant Fox and Omaha, respectively).
“The great ones, they just find another gear,” Baffert said of Justify, who improved to 6-0 and joined Seattle Slew as the only horse to claim the Triple Crown with an unbeaten record.
“He is a magnificent animal.” Smith, 52, the oldest jockey to win a Triple Crown, gave all credit to Justify.
“This horse ran a tremendous race,” Smith said. “He is so gifted. He is sent from heaven, I tell you.”