Belmont Stakes 2016: Results, Standings, Payouts, Replay Highlights

There may not have been a Triple Crown on the line during the 148th running of the Belmont Stakes in Elmont, New York, on Saturday, but there was a photo finish. 

Creator edged out Destin at the finish line to clinch the victory at the third and final leg of the Triple Crown, as NBC Sports Network shared: 

Preakness winner Exaggerator got caught on the outside of the leaders and never made a charge like he did at Pimlico. What's more, Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist was not in the field because of a fever and elevated white blood cell count, per Joe Drape of the New York Times, and Creator took full advantage during the 1 ½-mile Belmont.

Here is a look at the results, payouts and a replay of the race.

Belmont Stakes Results

Place	Horse	Lengths Behind
1	Creator	-
2	Destin	Nose
3	Lani	1.75
4	Governor Malibu	4.5
5	Stradivari	6.75
6	Brody's Cause	7.5
7	Cherry Wine	8.5
8	Gettysburg	9.5
9	Suddenbreakingnews	10
10	Trojan Nation	11.75
11	Exaggerator	14.75
12	Seeking the Soul	16.5
13	Forever D'Oro	18

Payouts

Horse	Win	Place	Show
Creator	$34.80	$14.60	$9.40
Destin	-	$9.40	$6.20
Lani	-	-	$6.60

Replay Highlights

NBC Sports shared a look at Saturday's race:

While it temporarily appeared Destin had enough for the closing stretch of the lengthy race, Creator settled just off the pace and on the inside of Exaggerator and made his late charge. It was a textbook display by jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., and he capitalized on the long track and preserved just enough energy in his horse before that closing stretch. 

Creator was in the middle of the bunch in the middle portion, but Ortiz Jr. found a way to weave through traffic (and keep Exaggerator on the outside before he faded) to earn the win. 

Despite the impressive performance, Creator entered the Belmont Stakes as something of a long shot after a poor finish in the Kentucky Derby. According to ESPN Stats & Info, his 13th-place finish at Churchill Downs was the "third-worst Derby finish by a horse that won the Belmont Stakes."  

Mike Dempsey of Odds Shark listed Creator with 16-1 odds, as of Friday at 12:15 a.m. ET. However, he did point out that favorites haven't been particularly successful in Elmont: "Last year American Pharoah became the first winning betting favorite in the Belmont Stakes since Afleet Alex in 2005. Just three betting favorites in the past 20 years have made it to the winner’s circle in the Belmont."

Creator didn't run the Preakness like challengers Exaggerator (11th place), Stradivari (fifth place), Lani (third place) and Cherry Wine (seventh place) did, so he was theoretically fresh compared to much of the top competition. The late kick to victory underscored just how fresh he was, as some of the other top horses appeared to tire and fall off the pace at the end of the 1 ½-mile race.

Creator's charge mirrored that of Exaggerator at the Preakness and Kentucky Derby. Exaggerator came up just short at Churchill Downs with a second-place finish, but jockey Kent Desormeaux navigated his way to the win at Pimlico. 

It looked as if Exaggerator had a lane on the outside of the leaders Saturday right as Creator began to charge toward the front, but he fell off the pace and finished in a distant 11th. Claire Novak of Blood-Horse tweeted: "Desormeaux says he thinks pace got Exaggerator beat. Says he handled track fine but came up empty after he was asked to wait early on."

Elsewhere, Preakness runner-up Cherry Wine finished in seventh and never really challenged for the title like fans saw at Pimlico.

American Pharoah won the first Triple Crown in 37 years in 2015, but there was a different winner in each leg this year. It was Creator's turn Saturday.