Covered in mud from the heels of his rivals, Orb made his move, six horses wide, coming out of the backstretch. When he drove past the wire by 2 1/2 lengths, 18 horses followed in his wake, including the 16 he had passed on his way to win the $2 million Kentucky Derby on Saturday, May 4.

Trained by Shug McGauhey, ridden by Joel Rosario, and sent off as the 5-1 favorite, Orb covered the 1 1/4 miles in 2.02.80, on a sloppy track. It was the fifth consecutive win for the son of Malibu Moon and the first Derby win for both McGauhey and Rosario.

Golden Soul, at 34-1, finished second, while second-favorite Revolutionary, with 3-time Derby winner Calvin Borel aboard, placed third.

“I was so far behind, but he did it so easy,” said Rosario, who won the world’s richest race, the $10 million Dubai World Cup, six weeks ago on 2011 Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom. “I let him be calm and relaxed. This guy today, it was all him.”

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” said Hall of Fame and Eclipse Award winning trainer McGauhey, who has saddled horses for Orb’s owner and breeder, Phipps Stable, since 1988.

It was 23-1 longshot Palace Malice, ridden by Derby veteran Mike Smith, who lead the charge down the backstretch with near record fractions of 22.57 and 45.33, and tired to finish twelfth. Palace Malice was one of five horses sent off by trainer Todd Pletcher, who also had four contenders in Friday’s $1 million Kentucky Oaks for fillies, including the winner, 38-1 longshot Princess of Sylmar.

The order of finish for the 2013 Kentucky Derby: Orb, Golden Soul, Revolutionary, Normandy Invasion, Mylute, Oxbow, Lines of Battle, Will Take Charge, Charming Kitten, Giant Finish, Overanalyze, Palace Malice, Java’s War, Verrazano, Itsmyluckyday, Frac Daddy, Vyjack, Falling Sky. Check here for pre-race details on individual entries.