Betting favorite Essential Quality won the Belmont Stakes, the third jewel of the Triple Crown on Saturday, outsprinting longtime race leader Hot Rod Charlie in the final stretch by a length-and-a-half. The win gives trainer Brad Cox his first-ever Triple Crown win, along with jockey Luis Saez.
The race began with Hot Rod Charlie sprinting out the gate to the front of the pack for an early lead that lasted all the way to the far turn. Once that point of the race came, a suddenly speeding Essential Quality -- a horse coming off the first and only loss of his career at Churchill Downs -- made his way through most of the competition, with only Hot Rod Charlie to beat. It looked to be a neck-and-neck finish during the beginning portion of the final stretch, but Essential Quality's pace was simply too much for Hot Rod Charlie to handle.
Upon crossing the finish line, Saez immediately pointed up towards the heavens in prayer. He revealed in the post-race interview that that was for his family, particularly his younger brother who died in 2014 as a result of head trauma from a horse racing spill.
Cox, meanwhile, finally got the celebration he wanted to have at the Kentucky Derby. The Louisville-born trainer was hoping that Mandaloun would win the Run for the Roses so he could have a hometown victory, but the horse finished second behind Medina Spirit. That being said, Medina Spirit's resulting failed drug test means that Cox's horse would become the winner, and he'd have victories in two of the three Triple Crown jewels this year if Medina Spirit is disqualified.
2021 Kentucky Derby results
2 - Essential Quality WIN: $4.60 PLACE: $3.00 SHOW: $2.60
4 - Hot Rod Charlie PLACE: $4.10 SHOW: $2.90
3 - Rombauer: SHOW: $3.50
$2.00 Exacta 2-4 $15.00
$1.00 Trifecta 2-4-3 $21.70
$1.00 Superfecta 2-4-3-6 $60.70
CBS Sports provided live updates, highlights and more in the lead up to this race, and through the winner's circle. Check those out down below.