2015 Kentucky Derby: Examining Race Results, Replay Video and More

In the weeks leading up to the 2015 Kentucky Derby, anticipation of a duel between top contenders American Pharoah and Dortmund grew at an alarming rate. The hype led to a record-breaking attendance of 170,513 racegoers, and the 141st Run for the Roses didn't disappoint its massive audience.

Throughout the race's 1 ¼-mile distance, American Pharoah, Dortmund and Firing Line put on an absolute show. The trio remained neck-and-neck up until the final stretch, where American Pharoah finally pulled away to earn the victory and start his run at the elusive Triple Crown.

Here's a look at the final results from Churchill Downs:

Place	No.	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Lengths
1	18	American Pharoah	Victor Espinoza	Bob Baffert	-----
2	10	Firing Line	Gary Stevens	Simon Callaghan	1
3	8	Dortmund	Martin Garcia	Bob Baffert	3
4	15	Frosted	Joel Rosario	Kiaran McLaughlin	3 1/4
5	5	Danzig Moon	Julien Leparoux	Mark Casse	6 1/2
6	3	Materiality	Javier Castellano	Todd Pletcher	7 3/4
7	14	Keen Ice	Kent Desormeaux	Dale Romans	8 3/4
8	6	Mubtaahij	Christophe Soumillon	Mike de Kock	9 1/2
9	13	Itsaknockout	Luis Saez	Todd Pletcher	10 1/4
10	2	Carpe Diem	John Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	11
11	21	Frammento	Corey Nakatani	Nick Zito	12
12	9	Bolo	Rafael Bejarano	Carla Gaines	12 3/4
13	17	Mr. Z	Ramon Vazquez	D. Wayne Lukas	15 1/2
14	1	Ocho Ocho Ocho	Elvis Trujillo	Jim Cassidy	15 1/2
15	20	Far Right	Mike Smith	Ron Moquett	15 3/4
16	16	War Story	Joe Talamo	Tom Amoss	19 1/4
17	4	Tencendur	Manny Franco	George Weaver	35
18	19	Upstart	Jose Ortiz	Rick Violette Jr.	60 1/2
	7	El Kabeir	Calvin Borel	John Terranova	SCR
	11	Stanford	Florent Geroux	Todd Pletcher	SCR
	12	International Star	Miguel Mena	Michael Maker	SCR

American Pharoah's victory marks the second consecutive year jockey Victor Espinoza won the Kentucky Derby.

Here's what he had to say following the win, according to Darren Rogers of KentuckyDerby.com: "I feel like the luckiest Mexican on Earth. He has been a special horse since the first time I rode him. He has a lot of talent and is an unbelievable horse. Turning for home I started riding a little harder. At the eighth pole, I just couldn't put that other horse (Firing Line) away, but he got it done."

Let's take a look back at American Pharoah's sparkling performance:

The key element to American Pharoah's win was his brilliant start. He burst out of the gate with such power and speed, allowing him room to maneuver toward the inside and putting him in a great position near the front of the pack. Settling in just behind Dortmund and Firing Line was absolutely huge, as the threat of getting stuck in traffic diminished.

Espinoza held his position in third place throughout the majority of the race, allowing Dortmund to control the pace. This was a similar strategy to the one the jockey employed atop California Chrome in 2014, avoiding traffic, maintaining his position and waiting patiently for his chance to strike.

Matt Slocum/Associated Press

Following the race's midway point, Espinoza steered American Pharoah three-wide, knowing full well his horse had enough stamina to finish strong despite slightly lengthening the race. When the leaders reached the far turn, Espinoza asked American Pharoah to run, and the favorite kicked into high gear.

Down the final stretch, Dortmund began to lose steam, watching American Pharoah and Firing Line blow by. While Firing Line certainly produced an admirable effort, he just didn't have the closing speed to keep up with American Pharoah.

After the race, trainer Bob Baffert commented on the performances of his two horses (American Pharoah and Dortmund) during an interview with Rogers: "We were ready to rumble. Since their last works I was hearing how good they were and I was hoping it would come true. I felt very confident going in."

He had every right to be confident, as his contenders furthered to solidify the trainer's legendary status, finishing first and third.

Next on the slate for these horses is the Preakness Stakes on May 16. Last year, Espinoza was able to take the Pimlico race atop California Chrome, and he'll be looking to do the same this year with American Pharoah.

So, what's the likelihood American Pharoah continues his winning streak? According to Odds Shark, the Kentucky Derby winner has 71-100 odds to win the Preakness Stakes, 11-10 to win the Belmont Stakes and 14-5 to take the Triple Crown.

Judging from what we saw Saturday at Churchill Downs, it sure seems as though the smooth-striding American Pharoah has the stamina, speed and finishing ability to notch his name in the history books right alongside 1978 Triple Crown winner Affirmed.