“Long before the last turn I had no horse,” said jockey Kent Desormeaux following his Triple Crown bid on heavily favored Big Brown. Da’Tara, a 38 to 1 longshot, who had finished 23 lengths behind Big Brown in the Florida Derby, led from gate to wire in a five-length victory. His only previous win in seven career starts came in a maiden race last January.

Although Desormeaux eased Big Brown up to finish last, he said that he felt nothing amiss with the horse’s stride. Big Brown had been treated for a quarter crack in his left front foot, but was considered sound to race. Dr. Larry Bramlage, the equine specialist on hand for all of the Triple Crown races, said that there was no indication of injury during Big Brown’s veterinarian inspection immediately following the race.

Big Brown was “keen to go early,” according to Desormeaux, who guided the colt to a well-placed third on the backstretch, then felt his horse begin to lose ground. Trainer Rick Dutrow, who was confident before the race that a Triple Crown was a certainty, was unavailable for comment after the race, but his assistant reported that Big Brown had definitely not been injured.

Da’Tara, trained for Robert LaPenta by Nick Zito, was ridden by Alan Garcia, who had just two prior G1 wins. It was Zito-trained Birdstone who upset the last Triple Crown hopeful, Smarty Jones. Big Brown is the only Triple Crown hopeful to finish last in the Belmont Stakes.

Denis of Cork, who finished third in the Kentucky Derby, then skipped the Preakness, placed second in the Belmont Stakes. Anak Nakal and Ready’s Echo made it a dead-heat for third. The winning time was 2:29.65.