(Reuters) - Justify won the Belmont Stakes in New York on Saturday to claim U.S. thoroughbred racing’s coveted Triple Crown, becoming just the second horse to achieve the feat since 1978 and the 13th overall. Before Saturday’s Belmont Stakes, which Justify won by 1 3/4 lengths over surprise second-place finisher Gronkowski, the massive chestnut colt with the white blaze had won the Kentucky Derby by a 2 1/2-length margin, becoming the first since Apollo in 1882 to win the classic without running as a 2-year-old. He is sent from heaven, I tell you.”

Like “Big Red,” as Secretariat was lovingly called, Justify (an even bigger “Big Red,” at 16.3 hands and 1,380 pounds, compared to a typical 1,100-pound thoroughbred), drew the No. In a withering display of power and durability, the late-blooming colt who didn’t race as a 2-year-old proved Saturday he couldn’t be worn out as a 3-year-old, thundering to victory in the Belmont Stakes to claim a place in history as the sport’s 13th Triple Crown champion.
Justify wins the Belmont Stakes and becomes the second horse in four years to win the U.S. Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing.