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Saturday, Justify earned the second jewel in his racing crown by winning the Preakness Stakes, and he is now one step from being a Triple Crown winner! Coming into this racing season as an untested colt, his early season wins proved what he is capable of before his big win at Churchill Downs earlier this month. This win was different though… It was hard fought and well earned.
Right out of the gate, he swapped places with Good Magic several times, who has challenged him previously in his short career. But just as the Derby was soaked with rain, Preakness Stakes was mired by both rain and fog, making the track sloppy and obscuring visibility for excited fans. For nearly 20 seconds the only glimpse of the contenders was on the big screens, making an already close race even more tense.
By the time the horses rounded the final corner towards home, Good Magic had been overtaken by Tenfold and Bravazo, with Justify maintaining the lead. Bravazo continued to gain in the last stretch, but it wasn’t enough to catch the leader who won by half a length. He fought hard to stay ahead of the second and third place finishers, both of whom did not race at Churchill Downs and were rested.
In just about 90 days, Justify has made quite a name for himself. He’s broken the Apollo Curse (winning the Kentucky Derby without racing as a two-year-old), won 5 of 5 career races, won both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes in the same month, and overcame a bruised heel between the races. Regardless of future performance, Justify has earned a spot as a formidable race horse.
Next, Bob Baffert is looking at a record only one trainer has accomplished – two Triple Crown winners – assuming that Justify remains healthy and is ready for Belmont Stakes on June 9th in New York. While he hasn’t confirmed if Justify will run Belmont Stakes, there’s no reason he shouldn’t reach for that last jewel. He’s now got 7 Preakness wins and 14 Triple Crown race wins, and to add another win at Belmont and the accompanying crown to his record is too tempting to pass up.