SARATOGA SPRINGS — Three years after the biggest victory of a lengthy and spread-out career, Commentator was up to his old tricks.

And it was his trainer who put the emphasis on old.

“When you get old, don’t give up,” Hall of Famer Nick Zito said. “Don’t give up, because you can see what can happen. You can have a great moment someday.”

Allowed to coast on an easy lead, Commentator turned it into an even easier finish, sprinting home 43⁄4 lengths in front to win the Grade I $750,000 Whitney Handicap Saturday at Saratoga Race Course.

At 7, Commentator became the second-oldest horse to win the

81-year-old Whitney behind Kelso, who was 8 when he won for the third time in 1965.

Having won the Whitney in 2005, beating eventual Horse of the Year Saint Liam in a thrilling stretch duel, Commentator is now one of only three horses to repeat, joining Kelso (1961, 1963, 1965) and Discovery (1934-36).

“For this horse to win this race . . . this was no fluke,” Zito said. “This was one of the great feats of all time. He gets in that league with Kelso, Forego. They can never take him out now.

“He’s in that league, a special, special league. What can I say? It was just a tremendous effort.”

The 4-1 second choice of a crowd of 27,297, Commentator ($10.80) ran the nine furlongs in 1:50.23, the slowest winning time since Kelso (1:502⁄5) in 1963. His victory automatically qualfied him for the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic Oct. 25 at Santa Anita.

Student Council came flying late and was a decisive second by 81⁄2 lengths over last year’s Travers runner-up, Grasshopper. It was another nose back to Notional in fourth.

Solar Flare, the 7-2 favorite making his third start in North America, raced up near the front early, but gave way in the stretch and wound up seventh, nearly 17 lengths behind.

“He was alive today, wasn’t he?” Zito said. “He was game. He’s an amazing horse. He’s seven, guys. Seven. What can I say?”

Breaking from the rail, jockey John Velazquez got Comment­ator to the front quickly and settled through fractions of :24.16, :47.73 and 1:11.80.

Velazquez shook loose from Timber Reserve and Solar Flare rounding the far turn, widened the lead to four lengths at the top of stretch and never looked back.

It was the second straight Whitney victory for Velazquez, and third overall. He was on Left Bank for last year’s track-record performance.

“He broke well and relaxed,” Velazquez said. “He got to the front, and that was it. He ran just as big as he did three years ago.”

Winning for the fourth time in six starts over the track, Commentator carried topweight of 120 pounds against a field that included eight graded stakes winners, including multiple Grade I winner Student Council.

“We ran a very good race. Commentator, as usual at Saratoga, was very effective,” trainer Steve Asmussen said. “Everybody made a run at him, but when he cut the corner, he was just gone.”

Commentator’s previous Whitney victory came two days before Zito’s induction. In a 26-year-career, Zito has won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont twice and Preakness and Travers once each.

“This is like a special win for me. It’s got to be up there with the greatest of them all, there’s no question,” he said. “He’s a 7-year-old gelding winning this kind of race with a tremendous field.

“This was no easy race. I’m elated, obviously, as you can see, and I’m very thankful to have a horse of this caliber. I want to put him in a glass house with a lot of maids and take care of him the rest of my life.”

Rising Moon, who ran fifth for trainer Rick Dutrow Jr., pulled up and was sore in his left front leg according to on-site veterinarians. He was vanned from the track and taken back to the barn for X-rays.