1973 Kentucky Derby starting gate. This forced Brumfield to dismount and adjust the saddle, delaying the Derby's start. Despite this, Brumfield stated he did not "want to make excuses, everything considered, my horse did fine." Betting on the ten races held that day at Churchill Downs totaled to $7,627,965, breaking the previous single-day record for American horse racing events of $7,164,717. Off-track betting on the Kentucky Derby reached $3,050,194, which was included in the previous record total. Secretariat went on to participate in the Preakness Stakes two weeks later, where he finished in first. Sham was second, again, by a margin of lengths.
Belmont Stakes the mile and a half stakes record (which is also a track and world record on dirt) of 2:24. The attendance at the Belmont Stakes is among the American thoroughbred racing top-attended events. The 2004 Belmont Stakes drew a television audience of 21.9 million viewers, and had the highest household viewing rate since 1977 when Seattle Slew won the Triple Crown. The 150th Belmont Stakes took place on Saturday, June 9, 2018. Justify won the race and became the second horse in four years to win the Triple Crown. The first Belmont Stakes was held at Jerome Park Racetrack in