Early Voting beat Epicenter in the final division to catch the 147th run of the Preakness Stakes on Saturday.
Rich Strike, winner of the Kentucky Derby, skipped the race. He kicked off a rail slide, twisty stretch to win with an 80-1 odds, and his casual coach, jockey, and owner — Eric Reed, Sonny Leon and Rick Dawson — became an overnight sensation.
But Dawson and Rich Strike decided their colts needed more than two weeks of rest and chose to skip Preakness to run in the Belmont Stakes on June 11.
Winning a time of 1:54.54 and 1¼ lengths ahead of Epicenter, Early Voting skipped the Kentucky Derby and paid off.
The lightly raced colt gave his trainer Chad Brown and owner Klaravich Stables Inc. their second victory in the Triple Crown’s middle jewel.
The coach and owner followed a similar path to win the 2017 Preakness.
The epicenter also finished second in the Kentucky Derby.
Early Voting jockey Jose Ortiz won the Preakness for the first time. He had never finished the previous four mounts above fourth place in the race.
When the nine horses entered the gate at Pimlico Racetrack, the temperature was around 90 degrees, almost a record.