Justify was victorious in the Kentucky Derby to maintain his unbeaten run, as Aidan O’Brien missed the chance to make history with Mendelssohn, Sky Sports report.
Heavy rain saturated the track for the 144th running of the race, where O’Brien was hoping to make history with the European-based horse.
However, favourite Justify eventually won by two and a half lengths in treacherous conditions ahead of Good Magic in second.
Much was expected of O’Brien and Mendelssohn after recent success, however, after a poor start, Mendelssohn came last of the 20 runners.
Winning jockey, 52-year-old Mike Smith, won the race for the second time after triumphing 13 years ago.
Justify, who didn’t race as a two-year-old, has now won all four of his races this year and is the first champion since 1882 to win the showdown for three-year-olds without running anywhere the previous year.
