Kentucky Derby 2015: Results and Takeaways Ahead of Preakness Stakes

American Pharoah and the Triple Crown. 

It sounds like an odd fairy tale, but get used to seeing the two words together after Bob Baffert's crown jewel overcame droves of adversity at the 2015 Kentucky Derby to best a deep field and throw their hat into Triple Crown contention.

Unlike most years, this isn't a simple overreaction because the globe is so thirsty for a horse to pull off a legendary feat not seen in more than 30 years.

No, American Pharoah stands just as good a chance, if not better, than California Chrome did last year.

There are other takeaways from Churchill Downs ahead of the Preakness Stakes, too, so let's take a look at the results and break it down.

2015 Kentucky Derby Results 

Place	No.	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Lengths
1	18	American Pharoah	Victor Espinoza	Bob Baffert	2:03.02
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

Video Replay

Top Takeaways

Firing Line is a Serious Threat in the Preakness

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For some, Firing Line's second-place finish was a shocker.

It's not, though.

Folks who dug deep knew this was coming from the Simon Callaghan-trained horse, jockeyed by the legend himself, 52-year-old Gary Stevens.

Stevens is a force no matter which horse he rides. Firing Line on his own has been pretty dominant, too. Folks were quick to dismiss him because of two second-place finishes in his last three outings, but it's important to understand he finished runner-up to Dortmund by just a head in the Los Alamitos Futurity Stakes in December and the Robert B. Lewis Stakes in February.

It was clear before the Kentucky Derby Firing Line can run with the best of the best. He proved it, with Stevens even helping to hold first place down the stretch until American Pharoah turned on the afterburners.

In a weaker field at the Preakness Stakes, the duo may have enough juice to set the pace and pull off the upset, so watch out.

Don't Forget About Dortmund

Rob Carr/Getty Images

Lost in much of the talk surrounding the spectacle at Churchill Downs was the fate of Baffert's other top horse, Dortmund.

For some, Dortmund was a better value pick than American Pharoah after the post positions draw. American Pharoah continued to shuffle around in a precarious position as scratches came in late, whereas Dortmund was in a favorable slot in the middle regardless.

Still, Dortmund and jockey Martin Garcia tried for an odd strategy, as handicapper Keeneland Dan points out:

There's no reason to turn away from Dortmund now, though.

The three-year-old colt did go into Churchill Downs undefeated in six races and still kept up every step of the way, a performance sure to translate well to the Preakness Stakes.

If the pace of the event starts slow, Dortmund touts the talent to take down a weaker field.

American Pharoah Stands Great Chance at Triple Crown 

Rob Carr/Getty Images

Folks always hope for a Triple Crown winner, but never have the stars seemed to align like this.

Where to start? American Pharoah overcame an iffy post position to steal the win. Not only that, he did so in what many consider the deepest class of horses in recent history.

The guidance of jockey Victor Espinoza helps. Speaking of him, folks will recall he's the jockey who almost rode California Chrome into history last year in a Triple Crown bid of his own, so he understands what it takes to get American Pharoah there.

Chris Graythen/Getty Images

A victory at the Preakness seems a guarantee. The field will be weaker, the track faster. A Kentucky Derby runner has won the Preakness every year since 2007, too, so it's not as if the event at Churchill Downs tires out the best.

Speaking of which, California Chrome seemed to fizzle last year going into the Belmont Stakes. Baffert doesn't consider it a problem with American Pharoah because he has only appeared in six races.

"With more racing, he's getting smarter," Baffert said, per Beth Harris of The Associated Press. "He has that long stride, he's quick, he's got a really good mind and he just floats over the ground."

In other words, not only is American Pharoah the best horse in the sport, he's on fresh legs and doesn't figure to lose energy in the final throes of a Triple Crown attempt.

Sprinkle in a top trainer and jockey, and it's no wonder American Pharoah overcame the odds at Churchill Downs.

Stats and information via KentuckyDerby.com unless otherwise specified.