Following a drinking binge the night of his Preakness win, Desormeaux decided to address his alcohol issues. He said, "I hit bottom… I had a blackout. That's enough." With the encouragement of his wife and brother, on May 31, 2016, he checked himself into an alcohol rehabilitation program at Cirque Lodge in Sundance, Utah. After a stay of eight days, he flew to New York to prepare for the 2016 Belmont Stakes, accompanied by a coach who assisted him in maintaining sobriety. Exaggerator did not respond when asked to run in the homestretch and finished eleventh. Kent's brother, Keith, did not blame the jockey, but noted the horse had run all three legs of the Triple Crown series and had struggled with the Belmont track.