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Atlanta-owned horse ‘Dornoch’ beats 17-1 odds to win Belmont

Theo

It’s been a Cinderella season for Atlanta-based West Paces Racing Partnership Group.

Remember, this is the partnership that had two horses (Dornoch and Society Man) competing in the Kentucky Derby this year.

Although neither horse placed in the Kentucky Derby, the horses were not finished for the season.

An image from Belmont television coverage

On Saturday, Dornoch was the unlikely winner of the Belmont Stakes – the final leg of the Triple Crown.

Before the race, none of the television commentators picked Dornoch to win. The horse’s chances of winning were almost last (17-1). But for most of the race, Dornoch was ahead of the favorites, either in first or second position. The jockey riding Dornoch was Luis Saez.

Dornoch’s victory at the Belmont led some media to call it a “historic victory.” The 2024 race was moved to Saratoga Springs, New York because Belmont Park is being renovated.

An image from Belmont television coverage

Belmont’s victory was a moment of jubilation for two of West Paces’ main players, Atlantans Larry Connolly and Keith Mason. They benefited from the victory of their compatriot Jayson Werth, a former baseball player who was with the Phillies when the team won the World Series in 2008.

But the West Paces ownership group still wasn’t done.

On Sunday, Society Man and jockey Corey Lanerie overcame the odds to win the GIII Matt Winn race at Churchill Downs. The odds for Society Man were 6-1, well behind Who Dey, a 7-5 favorite.

“Two days a week for the two biggest 3-year-old races of the weekend,” Mason wrote in a text. It was also a victory for Danny Gargan, the trainer of Dornoch and Society Man.

Larry Connolly and Keith Mason holding the Belmont Memorial Challenge Cup (Special)

In April, Mason, an Atlanta lawyer and real estate investor involved in Democratic politics for decades, had a hard time believing that West Paces would run two horses in the Kentucky Derby on May 4, estimating the odds that it would happen . were 0.0001.

“‘We’ve already won,’ Mason said at the time. “We’re in.” Getting here is a victory. It’s just the bigger victory, the better we do.

Well, West Paces, you did very well.

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