Preakness Results 2015: Winner, Payouts and Order of Finish
American Pharoah pulled away down the final stretch to win the 140th Preakness Stakes on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, slogging through a dirt track soaked in heavy rain to claim the Triple Crown's second jewel.
Jockey Victor Espinoza put forth an outstanding effort to get his horse to the winner's circle, and Tale of Verve and Divining Rod rounded out those who finished in the money in second and third place, respectively.
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Below are the results, along with the payouts for the top three finishers:
| 1 | 1 | American Pharoah | Victor Espinoza | Bob Baffert |
| 2 | 5 | Tale of Verve | Joel Rosario | Dallas Stewart |
| 3 | 7 | Divining Rod | Javier Castellano | Arnaud Delacour |
| 4 | 2 | Dortmund | Martin Garcia | Bob Baffert |
| 5 | 3 | Mr. Z | Corey Nakatani | D. Wayne Lukas |
| 6 | 4 | Danzig Moon | Julien Leparoux | Mark Casse |
| 7 | 8 | Firing Line | Gary Stevens | Simon Callaghan |
| 8 | 6 | Bodhisattva | Trevor McCarthy | Jose Corrales |
| American Pharoah | $3.80 | $3.40 | $2.80 |
| Tale of Verve | ---- | $19.00 | $8.80 |
| Divining Rod | ---- | ---- | $5.20 |
Baltimore's torrential downpour caused the infield to be evacuated, but that didn't stop the action on the sloppy track. Mother Nature only added more drama to the Run for the Black-Eyed Susans.
Mr. Z broke strong out of the third post to start, pushing the pace and forcing Espinoza to ride American Pharoah hard early. It was otherwise a borderline wire-to-wire romp.
Before getting to the top of the last stretch, Dortmund was pushing his stable mate, American Pharoah, and looked capable of pulling the upset. But even more so than he did at Churchill Downs, Espinoza rode American Pharoah to a gear his fellow competitors didn't have.
BloodHorse.com's Jeremy Balan praised the job Espinoza did en route to his third Preakness win:
Kathryn Schulz of the New Yorker logged what Espinoza had to say regarding his strategy to finish first:
Now American Pharoah is just the 35th horse in history to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown. One could have seen this coming, though, because Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has never failed to win the Preakness after claiming victory at the Kentucky Derby.
Baffert praised American Pharoah's effort afterward, per America's Best Racing:
The 9.5-furlong jaunt featured four of the top five finishers from the Kentucky Derby in the exclusive eight-horse field. It was therefore quite a surprise to see the very longest shot, Tale of Verve, surge to a runner-up finish.
Looking forward to the Belmont Stakes, ESPN Stats & Info highlighted how Baffert has had little trouble getting the first two marquee races out of the way in prior pursuits of the Triple Crown, but the grand finale has given him trouble:
No horse has been able to capture the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978, but American Pharoah's runaway triumph in the Preakness suggests he has the goods to get it done.
Mike Greenberg of ESPN seems to believe American Pharoah can pull off the Triple Crown at long last:
Espinoza will also be out for vengeance of some sort, since he fell short of the Triple Crown last year aboard California Chrome after winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness.
Next up is the Triple Crown finale, the Belmont Stakes, which takes place at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, June 6. The 12-furlong track makes Belmont Park the longest Triple Crown test, posing the ultimate challenge of endurance to those bold enough to enter.
Based on how fast American Pharoah is running, it's simply a matter of whether he can sustain his tremendous speed for 1.5 miles to lock up one more win.
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