Iowa-Owned Horse Redeems Derby Defeat with Prestigious Race Win
Go Mo!
There were only 8 horses in the race this year, but no one in Iowa is about to diminish the significance of Mo Donegal's victory in Saturday's Belmont Stakes. As you might remember, this horse was getting hyped up around these parts about a month ago in the lead-up to the Kentucky Derby. Mo Donegal is owned by Iowa-based Donegal Racing and started the Belmont Stakes on Saturday as a betting favorite at 5/2.
The Belmont Stakes are the third race in the prestigious "Triple Crown" which started last month at Churchill Downs. Mo Donegal finished fifth in that race, but the victory went to Rich Strike (who, in case you're curious, placed sixth in the Belmont Stakes.) The Preakness Stakes, in which Mo Donegal did not run, was held a few weeks later and won by "Early Voting".
Three different Triple Crown races, with three different winners, for the fourth straight year. Interestingly, according to the Des Moines Register, the last time there were three different triple crown race winners in four straight years was 1926-29.
There have been 13 horses to win the full Triple Crown, with the last one being Justify in 2018, according to Draft Kings.
The folks at Donegal Racing grab a nice purse of about $1.5 million for winning the race. According to KWWL, this is the first triple crown event won by Donegal Racing. However, USA Today says the horse's trainer, Tim Pletcher, picked up a win in a triple crown event for the sixth time.
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