For the majority of the 2000s, form tended to hold true when it came to the Santa Anita Derby.

Of the ten winners of Southern California's most important Kentucky Derby prep race that decade, six of them were either the first or second choice in the wagering. As for the remaining quartet, one was 6-1, and the final three pulled off shockers at or around 30-1.

With the exception of Tiago, the 2007 champion, the other three were conditioned by the same man: Jeff Mullins. And as he guided his charges to upsets each April, he happened to step into history by doing something that fellow trainers Mesh Tenney, William Molter, Laz Barrera, Charlie Whittingham and Bob Baffert never did.

It all began in the winter of 2003. Mullins received a new horse named Buddy Gil in the opening weeks of the year. Originally based in Northern California, Buddy Gil put together a nice juvenile season that saw him finish third or better in four of five starts while capturing a minor stakes race at Golden Gate Fields. He started off the year with an off the board showing in the Grade III Golden Gate Derby for original trainer Charles Jenda, but then made his way south to Mullins.

Not only Buddy Gil find that consistency he displayed the year before, he could not be stopped once he arrived at Santa Anita. He rattled off victories in the Grade III Baldwin Stakes and Grade II San Felipe Stakes (and doing so at sizable odds in both races) before being entered in the April 5 Santa Anita Derby.

Sent off at over 6-1, Buddy Gil made his move in the far turn. Not far from the leaders, he took advantage of a quick pace and emerged with a chance to win in the stretch. He battled with a game Indian Express all the way to the wire, but had enough to hold off his rival to pull off a minor upset in a photo finish as he gave Mullins his first Santa Anita Derby and Gary Stevens his record ninth and final triumph.

Though not favored in the 2003 renewal, Buddy Gil was seen as at least having a chance to win the Santa Anita Derby. The same cannot be said for Castledale, who went to the post at 30-1 in 2004. Not without class, the Irish-bred did well in his native country as he racked up top two finishes in handicaps and also took second in a stakes race before coming to California and winning the Grade III Generous Portion Stakes on turf in 2003. His sophomore year began with a sixth in the San Felipe (which also happened to be his first start of a layoff), and he was issued longshot status in the Santa Anita Derby.

But Castledale and jockey Jose Valdivia Jr. was primed to crash the party on April 3. Staying a few lengths off early leader Lucky Pulpit at first, he made up ground to assume command and defeated principal contenders St Averil, Wimbledon and Rock Hard Ten to deliver an unexpected result in front of a large Santa Anita crowd and go for a Kentucky Derby win in Louisville. He also made Mullins one of the few trainers to win back-to-back Santa Anita Derbies, and that gave the conditioner a proud accomplishment as he readied for another shot at the Triple Crown's first race.

Mullins found himself with another longshot in the 2005 Santa Anita Derby on April 9, and this one was Buzzards Bay. A son of Marco Bay, this chestnut defeated a small field in the Golden Gate Derby in January, but his best graded stakes finish came in the Grade III El Camino Real Derby at Bay Meadows. Making his Santa Anita debut in one of the track's most important races, fans did not see him being a contender. Like Castledale the year before, Buzzards Bay was given 30-1 odds while the majority of horseplayers put their support in Sweet Catomine.

But the drought for favorites continued. Sweet Catomine was a well beaten fifth while Buzzards Bay had a perfect path around the Santa Anita oval. When the stretch run began, he was in a similar position to Buddy Gil two years earlier. Buzzards Bay outran General John B and held off Wilko to give the Santa Anita Derby its second straight longshot winner and Mullins his unprecedented third consecutive victory in the big race.

After seven decades, the Santa Anita Derby had seen it all: favorites that won, longshots that won, future Triple Crown race winners, and a Triple Crown champion. But never a trainer winning three renewals in succession. Thanks to Buzzards Bay, Mullins became owner of one of the most unique accomplishments in local racing. And he did it without saddling a favorite.

Buddy Gil, Castledale or Buzzards Bay all competed on the first Saturday in May, but there was no Kentucky Derby glory for any of them. But each went on to varying degrees of success. Buddy Gil placed in some minor stakes, while Castledale and Buzzards Bay each added more graded stakes to their collections. But all three combined to create a truly remarkable distinction for their trainer.

Winning the same stakes race three years running is not easy to accomplish. Horses have done it, as have jockeys and trainers, but it is not something that can be expected to happen often. Thus, it makes the accomplishment a worthy tale to be handed down years after it happened.

Just look at the Santa Anita Derby as an example. Among jockeys, only Mike Smith and Gary Stevens have been able to do it. No trainer reached that mark before Mullins, and he is still the only conditioner to do so.

Even if someone matches him, the fact he did it first ensures Mullins will be a notable name in Santa Anita Derby history a half-century from now.