Godolphin’s Kentucky homebred Cody’s Wish rallied from the back of the pack around the far turn and drew off impressively in the lane to win the prestigious Metropolitan H. (G1) over a contentious field on Belmont Stakes Day. Ridden by his regular jockey Junior Alvarado, Cody’s Wish garnered a “Win and You’re In” berth to the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1) in November at Santa Anita, a race he won a year ago.

Trained by Bill Mott, the 5-year-old son of Curlin out of the Tapit mare Dance Card has now rattled off six consecutive stakes scores, three of them Grade 1s, including last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1).

“I thought he had a possibility of being a good horse before we ever ran him,” Mott related. “It took us a couple of races to get him going in the right direction and to get him educated enough to where he knew how to use his run. He’s finally figured it out.”

Off a step slow from his inside draw, Cody’s Wish gathered himself toward the rear of the field down the backstretch while West Coast invaders Slow Down Andy, Dr. Schivel, and Hoist the Gold battled for command on the front end. Next-to-last approaching the far turn, Cody’s Wish was angled to the outside by Alvarado and looped his rivals with relative ease to take command entering the stretch. He pulled clear late to win by a measured 3 ¼ lengths and stopped the clock in 1:34.36.

“At about the half-mile pole, I found my seam, moved behind the heels of horses to get into the clear, then he turned everything on,” Alvarado said. “Then, I just had to get out of his way and let him do his thing. He’s unbelievable.”

The win was his ninth in his last 10 starts, and the storybook horse is named for Cody Dorman, a teenager with the rare genetic disorder Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome. Dorman visited Godolphin’s Gainsborough Farm in Versailles through the Make a Wish program when Cody’s Wish was an unnamed foal and was introduced to the colt while touring the farm. The visit touched the hearts of those on the farm, leading Godolphin to name the colt after Cody.

“It’s as heartwarming for me as it is for the fans watching,” said Mott. “I had a lot of people tell me what a great story this is. For sure, it’s a great story, but it goes along with a good horse.”

Now a winner in nine of 13 lifetime starts, Cody’s Wish has amassed earnings of more than $2.3 million. He is perfect in two starts this year, having won the Churchill Downs S. (G1) in May.