This is not your father’s Belmont Stakes. Hell, it isn’t even your grandfather’s. Think of it more as the year they dug the third jewel out of racing’s Triple Crown and replaced it with a zircon.
There won’t be any drama at Belmont Park on Saturday, unless a bunch of bulldozers decide to race each other. The track will be rebuilt over the next two years, so it won’t be mandating that 3-year-old colts, barely out of equine diapers, run a mile and a half for the first and last time in their lives.
On Saturday, the distance will be cut to a mile and a quarter —the same as the Kentucky Derby. And when the starting gate bangs open for the 10 horses, the venue will be the venerable Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
That may be a kick in the groin of tradition, but it ain’t a bad trade-off when you consider that the air around Saratoga Springs is a hell of a lot purer. And when it comes to charm and beauty, Saratoga is a 10-1 favorite over anything you will find at Belmont Park’s home in Elmont, N.Y.
Now with the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes in the rearview mirror, we have a surprisingly good betting race. Both winners of the first two legs of the Triple Crown are in the field, along with what some still think is the best 3-year old in the country, Sierra Leone.
Despite his loss in the Derby to Mystik Dan, Sierra Leone was the early favorite for the Belmont — trained by Chad Brown, a local guy who was raised 13 miles from the track they call The Spa.
Brown is contemplating an equipment change. He likely will replace the horse’s standard bit with a cage bit, which gives the rider more control over the direction he wants the horse to move. Sierra Leone might have won the Derby had he not repeatedly bumped another horse down the stretch. Brown is counting on Flavien Prat to guide the colt in a clearer lane.
Seize the Grey, trained by D. Wayne Lukas, won the Preakness. Earlier this week Lukas, 88, described what it would take to come back from a win at Preakness just three weeks ago. Strange as it sounds, he said he is focused on making sure his horse is mentally ready for the challenge.
“Every trainer who has been a winner in a big race like this is pretty much convinced they’ve got them fit,” Lukas said. “The part that changes is the mental aspect of it. A horse that is mentally comfortable in his own skin is the thing trainers often overlook.”
He added: “The fans can relate to Mystik Dan, they can take a look at Seize the Grey and we get a chance to see them both and determine probably which is the better of the two. I think that the Belmont this year could easily be — you could make an argument for it being — the best of the three: the Derby, the Preakness or the Belmont. I think that they have probably put together the best of the three.”
He sounds more like a horse whisperer than a horse trainer. But then go argue technique with a man who has won the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont four times each along with seven Preakness wins.
Every trainer in the race believes it will be a battle — coming after the closest finish in Kentucky Derby history.
“How the race sets up is so unique,” Mystik Dan’s trainer Kenny McPeek said. “Mystik Dan is such a unique horse in that he’s got tactical speed, and I think that put him in a position to be able to win the Derby. Of course (there is also) the running style of Sierra Leone’s counter to Mystik Dan and then Seize the Grey. We’ve got a speed horse, a stalker, and we’ve got a closer.”
What this ersatz Belmont Stakes lacks in tradition it could offset by the quality of the competition that could make it memorable. Lukas didn’t want the one post — but that’s the way it came up. He probably has no choice but to send Seize the Grey to the front.
One way or another, Brown will probably figure out a way to keep Sierra Leone running straight, and Mystik Dan is still very much a factor.
The way I see it: Sierra Leone with a big close from off the pace, followed by Seize the Grey and Mystik Dan.
Jerry Izenberg is Columnist Emeritus for The Star-Ledger. He can be reached at ji*zenberg@starledger.com.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
