Rachel Alexandra backed up the hype.
The filly — coming off a smashing, 20-length triumph in the Kentucky Oaks — became the first distaff winner of the Preakness Stakes in 85 years, overcoming a wide post and 12 male rivals on a track her jockey claimed she didn't really like.
She staked her claim as the best 3-year-old in training and, perhaps, the best filly in a generation — "Alexandra the Great," ESPN.com proclaimed after the race.
But second-place finisher Mine That Bird, the 50-1 Derby winner, proved his win at Churchill was no fluke. He closed from last on the backstretch to fall short by just a length. Prior to his improbable win two weeks ago, he had given no indication that he had star potential. After two straight top-class performances, that now seems irrefutable.
Of the Derby also-rans, only Musket Man turned in a good performance, finishing third again. Friesan Fire was a disappointment for the second straight time. Pioneerof the Nile threw in his first clunker; he was beaten 26 lengths.
Now we head to a Belmont Stakes with no Triple Crown on the line — surprisingly for just the sixth time in the past 13 years. But there is plenty of intrigue: Will the first Preakness-winning filly since 1924 and the Derby's second most improbable victor ever renew a new rivalry in New York in three weeks' time?
