Tapwrit wins 149th running of the Belmont Stakes

Tapwrit overtook favorite Irish War Cry deep in the stretch to win the Belmont Stakes on Saturday at Elmont, N.Y.

Tapwrit, with Jose Ortiz aboard, ran down Irish War Cry to win by two lengths in the 149th running of the third leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown. His winning time for the 1 1/2 miles was 2 minutes, 30.02 seconds.

Sentimental favorite Patch, a one-eyed horse, finished third in the field that was missing Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming and Preakness Stakes champion Cloud Computing.

Classic Empire, expected to be the favorite, had to be scratched earlier in the week due to a recurrence of an abscess in his right front hoof.

“It’s a feeling I can’t explain I’m very happy right now,” jockey Jose Ortiz said guiding Tapwrit to victory at 5-1 odds in the 11-horse field.

Tapwrit returned $12.60, $6.50 and $5 for trainer Todd Pletcher, who won two legs of the Triple Crown following his victory with Always Dreaming in the Derby.

Irish War Cry paid $4.70 and $3.90 while Patch, another Pletcher-trained horse, returned $6.50 to show.