American Pharoah wins Belmont Stakes; first Triple Crown winner since 1978

ELMONT (WABC) -- American Pharoah basked in the glory of his Triple Crown triumph Sunday while his human handlers tried to grasp the stunning reality of the sport's first sweep of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont in 37 years.

Trainer Bob Baffert led the bay colt onto a patch of grass outside of, fittingly, Barn 1 on a sunny and warm morning at Belmont Park. It was only hours after his front-running, 5 -length victory, but the low-key champ appeared to enjoy the attention, dutifully posing for photographers and patiently letting bystanders pet him.

"He's a really sweet horse," Baffert said. "We're going to share him with everybody."

Fellow Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott stopped by for a close-up look at American Pharoah, much like Baffert visited Mott's barn in the mid-1990s to see Cigar, who won 16 consecutive races.

American Pharoah arrived in Louisville, Kentucky, later in the day, and he was set to receive a royal welcome at Churchill Downs, his home in between Triple Crown races.

Jockey Victor Espinoza threw out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium, where Baffert attended the game.

Next up for racing's 12th Triple Crown winner is some well-deserved downtime, having run in and won five Grade 1 races in nearly 2 months. That's a compressed schedule for a racehorse, most of which have at least 30 days between starts.

"It's ridiculously insane what he did yesterday," Baffert said. "It was a beautiful moment."

Owner Ahmed Zayat pledged to keep racing's newest superstar in training, at least through the end of the year. Before the Belmont, Zayat sold breeding rights to American Pharoah for an undisclosed amount to Coolmore Ashford Stud near Versailles, Kentucky.

After the race, Espinoza tweeted,

"They have zero say until he retires," Zayat said. "We owe it to the sport to do the right thing. Money plays an important factor in this game. I've already sold the breeding rights, but it is my genuine desire, as a fan, as someone who loves horses, to race him as long as I possibly can."

Zayat will leave it up to Baffert to map out a schedule. Among the races under consideration are the Jim Dandy at Saratoga in upstate New York on Aug. 1; the Haskell Invitational at Monmouth in New Jersey on Aug. 2; the Pacific Classic at Del Mar on Aug. 22; and the Travers at Saratoga on Aug. 29.

The Haskell might have an edge because Baffert has won it a record seven times and Zayat lives in Teaneck, New Jersey.

"He's an athlete. We have to keep him moving," Baffert said. "He's so happy when he's on that track."

The ultimate goal would be the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic, to be run Oct. 31 at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky, the cradle of American racing and breeding and near where American Pharoah will serve stud duty.

Baffert vowed to have American Pharoah properly prepared for his next race, saying, "He'll tell me."

Should anything happen to the colt in future races, Zayat is covered by an insurance policy for which the rates are "incredibly high," Baffert said recently.

Zayat, who has invested tens of millions of dollars into his breeding, buying and racing operation, believes it's not always about money when you're passionate about something.

"We are not thinking here of value or money," he said. "When the horse is ready, we will not be scared of running him to lose or not. It's all about the fans and this belongs to history."

Off the racetrack, Zayat figures to have marketing and merchandising opportunities to sort through. Just what kind of offers he receives and deals he cuts are uncharted territory since American Pharoah is the first Triple Crown winner in the Internet and social media age.

Secretariat, the 1973 Triple Crown winner, was featured on major magazine covers and the U.S. Postal Service issued a stamp in his honor. He remains a pop culture touchstone for even non-racing fans, and merchandise featuring him sold at Belmont Park on Saturday.

Judging by the crowd's reaction to history, American Pharoah seems likely to be a popular champion, having cemented his legacy in New York, where the public is not easily won over.

"Everybody was on board with this horse," Baffert said. "I was pretty in awe of him myself."

Here's what to know about how he became a champion, and what's ahead for him:

A GREAT HORSE

It takes a great horse to win the Triple Crown, one that can endure the compressed schedule of three races at various distances on different tracks in five weeks. Not to mention the prep races needed to accumulate enough points to run in the Derby. After losing his first career race, American Pharoah went on to win an Eclipse Award as last year's 2-year-old champion. Now, he's won seven in a row and the only close one was the Derby, which he won by a length. That was the stiff test he needed to toughen up for the rest of the Triple Crown. He later won the Preakness by seven lengths in a driving rainstorm.

OVERCAME INJURY

American Pharoah, the early favorite, couldn't run in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile last October because of a bruised left front foot. He was off for 6 months and didn't return to the races until March 14. That's somewhat late in the Derby prep season, but trainer Bob Baffert showed patience in resting his star horse until he was fully recovered. American Pharoah didn't lose any of his conditioning despite his extended vacation. "Nobody can make a slow horse a fast horse," owner Ahmed Zayat said, "but it's a trainer who cares who can develop a horse. A trainer who cares knows when to stop a horse when we're all tempted to run him."

FAILURE AND EXPERIENCE

Baffert and jockey Victor Espinoza can breathe sighs of relief after ditching their personal Triple Crown curses. Baffert had lost his three previous Triple tries, including by a nose in 1998. He finally got his hands on the sterling silver Triple Crown trophy that had been waiting 37 years at the Kentucky Derby museum for someone to claim it. "I was really getting to dislike this trophy - it's come with a lot of misery," Baffert said. Espinoza missed Triple Crown sweeps in 2002 - riding War Emblem who was trained by Baffert - and last year aboard California Chrome. "I feel like a loser the last two times," he said. "I looked at that trophy, I was excited and kind of angry because two times I can't get it until now."

NEXT UP

The breeding rights to American Pharoah were sold before the Belmont to Coolmore Ashford Stud in Versailles, Kentucky. Zayat will continue to own the colt until he retires, which isn't expected to be until sometime next year. "Can this change? Possibly, I can't promise," Zayat said. "We need to enjoy our stars and race them as long as we possibly can." Stud fees won't be determined until American Pharoah retires, but winning the Triple Crown should send them into orbit. His sire, Pioneerof the Nile, stands at $60,000 per live foal.