Kentucky Derby 2017 Video Replay, Highlights and Recap

Always Dreaming made Todd Pletcher's Kentucky Derby dream come true Saturday.

The three-year-old colt comfortably won the 2017 Kentucky Derby by 2 ¾ lengths on a wet track, besting second-place Lookin At Lee (33-1) and third-place Battle of Midway (40-1).

Always Dreaming, which came in as a 9-2 morning line favorite, seemingly had little competition on the track. He was raced expertly by John R. Velazquez, who previously won the 2011 Kentucky Derby atop Animal Kingdom.

Lookin At Lee was the only horse within five lengths of Always Dreaming. Battle of Midway finished 7 ¾ lengths out in third place. 

Martin Rickman of Uproxx compared Always Dreaming's dominance to Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James' prowess during the NBA playoff series with the Toronto Raptors:

Each of the last five Kentucky Derbys have been won by the favorite heading to the gate. It's a bit of an anomalous streak, given the previous four years had seen no favorite win, and only one horse (Super Saver, 2010) win at better than 15-1 odds.

Result	Post	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Final Odds
Win	5	Always Dreaming	Todd Pletcher	John R. Velazquez	9-2
Place	1	Lookin At Lee	Steven Asmussen	Corey Lanerie	33-1
Show	11	Battle of Midway	Jerry Hollendorfer	Flavien Prat	40-1

As the race drew closer, money seemed to be coming in heavy on Always Dreaming. The Pletcher-trained horse, which was 5-1 during the morning-line odds, went to the gate at 9-2. Most of the other favorites saw their odds go higher in what some viewed as a wide-open field. 

"The one thing I felt like is I don't think we've ever come here and not won with the best horse," Pletcher said coming into the race, per Dick Jerardi of Philly.com. "In Always Dreaming's case, he's certainly one of the best chances we've brought here."

Pletcher took home his second Kentucky Derby, the first coming with Super Saver in 2010. With three starters in the field, Pletcher tied the record for most Derby horses in history. That he only had one win coming into 2017 was perhaps the only blip on his resume. 

Classic Empire, which opened as the morning line favorite at 4-1, finished fourth. He wound up being the second favorite at 7-1 by the time they hit the gate. Most of that likely had to do with the forecast, which had been calling for rain all week.

"It's disappointing," Classic Empire assistant trainer Mark Casse told Eric Crawford of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I'm from Louisville. I want everybody to be able to come out and have a great Derby day. But for us, you train your horse his whole life for this moment, and then to be tested in conditions he's never seen, it's not ideal."

Lookin At Lee and Battle of Midway represent unlikely podium finishers. Both came in as high-odds long shots, with Lookin At Lee also starting on the inside podium.

Trainer Steve Asmussen, who won the 2016 Belmont with Creator, deserves a ton of credit for getting his horse ready for the slop. Battle of Midway was trained by the legendary Jerry Hollendorfer, who has over 7,000 wins on his resume but no Triple Crown victories.

*Odds via the NBC broadcast.