ORLANDO, Fla. — A whippet named Bourbon emerged Sunday as the toast of the American Kennel Club National Championship at the Orange County Convention Center.

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Bourbon dethroned a Pekingese named Wasabi for coveted Best in Show honors and a $50,000 prize. Wasabi, who last year became the first dog in the toy group to win the AKC National Championship, won Reserve Best in Show, or runner-up.

The event marked a continued hot streak for Bourbon, a 5-year-old from Sugar Valley Farm and Kennel in Sugar Valley, Georgia, who won the hound group in the 2020 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The American Kennel Club describes a whippet as “sleek” and “sweet-faced,” with “streamlined grace.” Similar to but smaller than a greyhound, the whippet is a lightning-quick “poor man’s racehorse” that rarely barks, the AKC says.

Bourbon won with far less fanfare than in previous AKC National Championship events.

Because of coronavirus safety protocols, the AKC closed the event to the public and removed ringside seating at all competition areas. It also cut a regular Meet the Breeds component in which breeders introduce spectators to certain breeds and answer questions about them.

The organization says it plans to bring the event to Orlando for an 11th straight national championship in 2021.

“We’re waiting for next year to bring spectators back,” AKC spokeswoman Brandi Hunter told Spectrum News on Saturday. “They’ll get to learn about the breeds, they’ll get to see the shows, and we’re really looking forward to that, because it’s part of the fun of coming to Orlando.”