Union Rags has won the 144th Belmont Stakes, surging past Paynter down the stretch.
Payner went to the front early out of the gate but could not hold off a late charge by the horse ridden by Johnny Velazquez. A co-favorite along with Dullahan when the race began at 5/2, Union Rags was near the front for the majority of the race, lurking in fourth before making his move late. Union Rags went to the inside rail to overtake Paynter.
Union Rags and Paynter (4-1) were followed by Atigun (19-1) and Street Life (9-1). Paynter’s trainer Bob Baffert also trained Bodemeister, who narrowly lost the first two legs of the Triple Crown to I’ll Have Another.
When the 1 1/2-mile race began, the most notable horse in the sport wasn’t on the track, with I’ll Have Another being scratched on Friday. Although the Triple Crown was not in play, Union Rags and his party will certainly not be complaining about how the race turned out.
NEW YORK — Union Rags nipped Paynter at the wire in a photo finish Saturday to win the Belmont Stake, beating a field without Triple Crown hopeful I’ll Have Another, who was retired with an injury the day before.
The finish was another thriller in the final leg of the Triple Crown, and trainer Bob Baffert was on the losing end each time.
I’ll Have Another used two stirring stretch drives to beat Baffert’s Bodemeister in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. In the 1 1/2-mile Belmont, it was Union Rags who provided the thrills.
A crowd of 85,811 cheered as the horses battled down the stretch, and Union Rags barely caught the front-runner at the end.
Trained by Michael Matz, Union Rags finished a disappointing seventh in the Derby and skipped the Preakness. Jockey John Velazquez replaced Julien Leparoux for this race.
Union Rags was along the inside in the middle of the pack until it was time to make a move for the lead. Velazquez guided Union Rags to the inside of the front-running Paynter and relentlessly closed the gap and won by a neck.
Union Rags, the 5-2 second choice behind Dullahan, covered the 1 1/2 miles in 2:30.42. The colt owned By Chadds Ford Stable’s Phyllis Wyeth returned $7.50, $4.20 and $3.40. Paynter, with Mike Smith riding, paid $5.10 and $3.90. Atigun was third and paid $10.60.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Jockey John Velazquez eases up on Union Rags, right, after victory over Paynter, left, with jockey Mike Smith, in the Belmont Stakes horse race in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Union Rags, inside, with jockey John Velazquez, defeats Paynter, with Mike Smith, in the Belmont Stakes horse race in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Union Rags, right, with jockey John Velazquez, eases ahead of Paynter, with Mike Smith riding, to win the Belmont Stakes horse race in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Jockey John Velazquez rides Union Rags, right, to victory over Paynter, with jockey Mike Smith, in the Belmont Stakes horse race in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Jockey John Velazquez rides Union Rags, right, to victory over Paynter, with jockey Mike Smith, in the Belmont Stakes horse race in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Jockey John Velazquez smiles aboard Union Rags after their win in the Belmont Stakes horse race at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., on Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Michael Matz, John Velazquez, Union Rags
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Union Rags, JohnVelazquez, Mike Smith, Panter
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Union Rags with jockey John Velazquez up, right, holds off Paynter with jockey Mike Smith to win the 144th Belmont Stakes horse race at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., on Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
A general view of the start of the 144th running of the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park on June 9, 2012 in Elmont, New York.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Groom Incencio Diaz, left, and stable foreman Benjamin Perez, right, lead I’ll Have Another into the winner’s circle at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012, for his retirement ceremony.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Jockey Mario Gutierrez, left, and trainer Doug O’Neill, right, talk as they walk to the winner’s circle ahead of I’ll Have Another for the horse’s retirement party at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
I’ll Have Another (11) is walked through the paddock past a statue of 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat prior to his retirement ceremony and the running of the Belmont Stakes horse race on Saturday, June 9, 2012, at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Howard Berman, of Yonkers, N.Y., wears his I’ll Have Another T-shirt before the Belmont Stakes horse race at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Julia Hanson, 8, of Chicago, looks at a statue of 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat prior to the Belmont Stakes horse race, Saturday, June 9, 2012, at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Retired jockey Ron Turcotte, left, who rode Secretariat to the Triple Crown in 1973, poses for photos with Kenny Foudy, 5, next to a statue of the race horse prior to the Belmont Stakes, Saturday, June 9, 2012, at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Jami Jordan, left, of Carlisle, Pa., and Tonia Cooke, of Oakdale, N.Y., pose for photos by a statue of 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat prior to the Belmont Stakes horse race, Saturday, June 9, 2012, at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Todd Martin of Canton, Mich., stands behind a banner he draped at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., on Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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Union Rags Wins Belmont
Race fans watch horses in the paddock before the fourth race at Belmont Park race track in Elmont, N.Y., Saturday, June 9, 2012.
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June 9th, 2012 
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