Kentucky Derby Results 2016: Race Highlights, Video Replay and Reaction

Nyquist took the first leg of the Triple Crown Saturday as he won the 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.   

For much of the race, it was Danzing Candy, Nyquist and Gun Runner well ahead of the pack and jostling for the lead. Coming down the final stretch, Nyquist, the pre-race favorite, took command of the race and led the rest of the way, but not before Exaggerator, the horse with the second-best odds heading into Saturday, made a furious rally to nearly catch Nyquist before finishing as the runner-up.

For the fourth straight year, the Kentucky Derby favorite came away as the victor. Nyquist will hope to follow in the path of American Pharoah, who went the distance to complete the Triple Crown in 2015. 

	Horse	Post	Lengths Behind
1	Nyquist	13	--
2	Exaggerator	11	1 1/4
3	Gun Runner	5	4 1/2
4	Mohaymen	14	4 1/2
5	Suddenbreakingnews	2	4 1/2
6	Destin	9	6 3/4
7	Brody's Cause	19	9 1/4
8	Mo Tom	4	10
9	Lani	8	10 1/2
10	Mor Spirit	17	14 1/4
11	My Man Sam	6	14 1/4
12	Tom's Ready	12	16 3/4
13	Creator	3	18
14	Outwork	15	18 1/4
15	Danzing Candy	20	19 3/4
16	Trojan Nation	1	27 1/2
17	Oscar Nominated	7	33 1/4
18	Majesto	18	37 1/2
19	Whitmore	10	38
20	Shagaf	16	DNF

Race Replay 

Kentucky Derby Reaction

Nyquist is now 8-0 in his career, which ESPN notes is a rare feat:

It was not easy as Nyquist battled throughout before taking a lead he would not relinquish, although it was close:

If the race were maybe just a furlong more, Exaggerator may have caught Saturday's winner. Fox Sports' Tim Brando commended the horse's strong effort:

It also appears that even in sporting events not focused on human beings, Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is still not safe from criticism:

Mohaymen, another contender heading into the Derby, underwhelmed for most of the race, but he finished strong and nearly earned a top-three placing. He caught the eye of Daily Racing Forum's Jay Privman:

Still, this day belonged to Nyquist. He lived up to the hype in the Kentucky Derby and looked to be best horse in the field. Rightly so, he received an abundance of praise.

According to the Courier-Journal, Doug O'Neill, Nyquist's trainer, called his horse a supreme specimen and even referenced Kobe Bryant on the NBC broadcast when talking about how he closed the race down the stretch:

The horse was in good hands, as jockey Mario Gutierrez is pretty successful when it comes to the year's most prominent races, per ESPN Stats and Info:

For his efforts, Gutierrez received quite a nice reward, according to Robert Raiola, the director of sports and entertainment for PFK O'Connor Davies:

With the horse being named after Detroit Red Wings forward Gustav Nyquist, the team had to get in on the fun as well:

Not NHL Tonight was not as kind to the Swede:

"

We keep seeing reports that a "Nyquist" won something, which is odd, considering the Red Wings were eliminated not too long ago.

— NOT NHL Tonight (@NOTNHLTonight) May 7, 2016"

Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde started up the Triple Crown talk, saying Nyquist has been a threat all season:

O'Neill believes his horse can make history as well, per Blood-Horse:

Per ESPN Stats and Info, Nyquist won the Kentucky Derby in about two minutes, one second, which is roughly two seconds faster than American Pharoah last year. This shows that Nyquist has the physical ability to make a serious run at the prestigious trifecta.

He will again be the favorite when the Preakness kicks off on May 21. Nyquist has shown no reason to pick against him so far, so expect him to pull out a win at Pimlico in Baltimore to set up a chance at the second back-to-back Triple Crown sequence ever and first since 1978.