Bodog Beat

Blinkers on! Was it a change in equipment that made all the difference for Summer Bird? (AP Images)

Jockey Kent Desormeaux, who finished second twice before at the Belmont Stakes, wins the 2009 Belmont Stakes riding Summer Bird. The other bird, Mine That Bird, hung back for most of the race and then made an early move — maybe a bit too early — to push for the lead but ended up taking third place and still in the money. Dunkirk finished in second place.

"He was fighting it just a little bit, " jockey Calvin Borel said on Mine That Bird. "I didn't want to fight him too much."

Summer Bird, the 11/1 odds to win the 2009 Belmont Stakes, becomes the surprise winner of the Belmont Stakes and denies jockey Calvin Borel his own 'Triple Crown.'

"I had an armchair ride until I found some room. said winning jockey Kent Desormeaux "Well, I found some room."

Bred by owners Kalarikkal and Vilasini Jayaraman out of the mare Hong Kong Squall and a daughter of 1990 Preakness winner Summer Squall, Summer Bird has raced only four times in his entire career.

Here is a breakdown of the 2009 Belmont Stakes $1 million purse:

Winner     $620,000
Second     $200,000
Third     $100,000
Forth     $50,000
Fifth     $30,000

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