2015 Belmont Stakes: Key Moments from American Pharoah's Final Triple Crown Race

The wait was almost over as American Pharoah completed the turn for home and was starting down Belmont Park's long and grueling stretch run.

The same stretch run that had gotten the better of 12 other Triple Crown hopefuls since 1979. The same stretch run on which Affirmed had outdueled Alydar in 1978 to win the most recent Triple Crown. The same stretch run that Secretariat had used to obliterate the field in 1973 and win by 31 lengths.

There would be no collapse this time. At the point when others had started to tire and slow down, American Pharoah dug in and ran his heart out. He did not give in to a hard-charging Frosted, who would finish second.

Instead, he would win by 5 ½ lengths and breathe life into a sport that was badly in need of an equine hero. He gave the sport a moment of joy as he sped down the stretch, and that's the most important moment from his Belmont Stakes and consequent Triple Crown victory on Saturday.

There were other important moments as well, and two of them took place prior to the race. The first came on Tuesday, when the big colt made his journey from Churchill Downs in Kentucky to the Elmont, New York track.

There was little doubt that trainer Bob Baffert made sure American Pharoah would be comfortable and well taken care of throughout his journey, but there are horses that ship from track to track all the time. Those trips do not always go well. There were no guarantees that American Pharoah would emerge from that journey ready to run his best race, but that's just what happened.

Place	No.	Horse	Jockey	Trainer
1	5	American Pharoah	Victor Espinoza	Bob Baffert
2	6	Frosted	Joel Rosario	Kiaran McLaughlin
3	7	Keen Ice	Kent Desormeaux	Dale Romans
4	1	Mubtaahij	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	Mike de Kock
5	4	Frammento	Mike Smith	Nick Zito
6	3	Madefromlucky	Javier Castellano	Todd Pletcher
7	2	Tale of Verve	Gary Stevens	Dallas Stewart
8	8	Materiality	John Velazquez	Todd Pletcher

The other key moment before the start of the race came when the colt's handlers put his trusted plugs in his ears. There were no indications at any point on his way to the Triple Crown that he was anything but excited by the big crowds in Kentucky and Maryland. Still, Baffert did not want his horse spooked or distracted by the huge noise the New York crowd would make prior to, during and after the race, so ear plugs were used again.

They made American Pharoah comfortable, and he was calm when he stepped onto the track. The same cannot be said for Baffert. His level of excitement was at a new level throughout the day, and much of that was due to the explosive crowd.

“The crowd was just thundering,” Baffert told Joe Drape of the New York Times. “I was enjoying the crowd and the noise and everything happening.”

When the gates opened, American Pharoah did not leave as if he was struck by lightning. Instead, it took him two jumps to gain the lead. Once American Pharoah made it to the front, he found his stride and was never headed.

That's when jockey Victor Espinoza knew his horse was going to give him the special effort that would allow him to run into the history books. “He was right in the lead where I wanted to be, in front of everybody,” Espinoza told the New York Times.

American Pharoah was challenged three times during the race. Materiality gave an honest effort and chased after him through the first mile, but that's when American Pharoah picked up the pace and kicked away from him.

Mubtaahij, who never picked up the chase in the Kentucky Derby, pushed him at the far turn and got within three lengths for a couple of blinks before falling back.

Finally, Frosted made his run in the stretch. It was a good one, as he cut a five-length deficit to 2 ½ lengths. At the moment he could have lost his edge, however, American Pharoah kicked it into another gear and left Frosted in his wake.

By the time it was over, the distance between American Pharoah and Frosted was 5 ½ lengths, and the time he needed to complete the 1 ½-mile classic was 2:26.65. That was the second-best winning time in Belmont Stakes history, placing him right behind Secretariat's 2:24. Big Red's performance 42 years ago remains horse racing's best performance.

But American Pharoah's thrilling run in the Belmont Stakes may be second. Take nothing away from Seattle Slew and Affirmed, but those performances came on the heels of Secretariat. The wait for a Triple Crown winner felt as if it would be interminable for horse racing fans, and American Pharoah put an end to it.

He has earned his spot in sport's pantheon of great champions. His name has been added to Sir Barton, Assault, Whirlaway, War Admiral, Count Fleet and Citation, along with Secretariat, Seattle Slew and Affirmed.

The 2015 Belmont Stakes was the moment of a lifetime for American Pharoah—and it was even better for the sport.