Belmont Stakes Day blog

8:45 p.m.

Mix a WinStar colt with a Nick Zito-trained horse and you could have passed go this year and collected on two exactas in Triple Crown races.

Deciding which two was a bit tricky. In the Kentucky Derby it was WinStar’s Super Saver first and Zito’s Ice Box second.

In Saturday’s Belmont Stakes it was WinStar’s Drosselmeyer and Zito’s Fly Down.

Sometimes the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Drosselmeyer came full circle in the Belmont as the colt who was a highly touted Triple Crown contender in the early spring and then disappointed in the Risen Star, Louisiana Derby and Dwyer finally reached his potential by capturing the $1 million Belmont Stakes by three-quarters of a length.

Perfectly ridden by jockey Mike Smith, Drosselmeyer wore down the leaders from the outside and then held off a late bid from Fly Down, in reversing the order of finish in the Dwyer when Fly Down beat Drosselmeyer.

Trainer Bill Mott said Drosselmeyer was a bit rusty off a six-week layoff when he ran in the Dwyer and that six-length loss was the perfect tonic to put his colt on edge.

“I got a little nervous when he ran in the Dwyer and it looked like he needed some racing,” said Mott after his first Triple Crown victory, “but it turned out to be a good plan.”

As a result, a lively second half of the season looms in the battle for the three-year-old championship. In a year which produced three different Triple Crown race winners, it’s hard to choose between the WinStar duo and Preakness winner Lookin At Lucky. Lookin At Lucky probably has a slight edge because he’s the only one of the three with more than one stakes win this year, but clearly there’s a long way to go in the battle for the Eclipse Award.

“I think you have to group all three horses together,” WinStar racing manager Elliott Walden said. “It’s going to be hard to differentiate between them until we get to the Haskell and the Travers and Breeders’ Cup. I’d have to feel we have two of the top three and it’s going to be an exciting second half of the year.”

And so that brings down the curtain on a 32nd Triple Crown season in a row without a sweep. The Belmont did not add much clarity to the three-year-old division, but it was a great betting race, especially if you cashed on Drosselmeyer ($28) or the $144.50 exacta for boxing the 1-2 finishers in the Dwyer.

I’m with you in spirit on that folks, because I whiffed on the race.

There were some rare occurrences as Drosselmeyer’s win produced the first time since 1896 that one owner has won two Triple Crown races with horses saddled by different trainers. In Uptowncharlybrown, we also had a horse disqualified from fifth to 12th for losing an eight-pound pad from his saddle during the race. That may have been a first.

It was that kind of year.

Looking over my pile of mutuel tickets that’s heading to a recycling bin, I didn’t close out as strongly at the betting windows as I would have liked. Stay Put let me down, though he moved up to fifth with the DQ. Too bad they don’t offer a fifth-place wager. I might have cashed.

At least I connected on a $106 exacta in the race after the Belmont, so I have gas money for the ride home tonight. Toll money for the NY bridges is a different matter. Wonder if my left arm will suffice.

And now, after sweeping the floors, I toss the BEB back to Ed. Thanks for stopping by.

6:25 p.m.
They’re about to start singing some form of a Jay-Z, Alicia Keys song and the horses will be on the track for the Belmont.

Ice Box is up to 9-to-5, which is still too low. Fly Down is 5-to-1 and First Dude is 6-to-1.

Guess I’m on an island with Stay Put, who is 25-to-1 in the 142nd Belmont. But I’ll happily take Ice Box, Fly Down or Make Music for Me.

And here’s a message to Calvin Borel who is on Dave in Dixie, a way-too-low 13-to1 shot I have no tickets on: This is New York, dude. The rail is not always golden.

I’ll also put my 12th and 13th race picks listed earlier to work and see if I can close the card strongly.

Good luck to us all and I’ll talk to you after the race.

5:30 p.m

There exiting stage left, ladies and gentlemen, is today’s Pick Six from Belmont Stakes.
Thanks to Champagne d’Oro’s 39-to-1 stunner in the Acorn (G1), there’s a better than average possible that we’ll be looking at another carryover when racing resumes at Belmont Park on Wednesday.

As stunning as was it to watch Champagne d’Oro win based on her form, it was equally surprising to see shoot to the lead, work her way over to the rail from post 12 and then hang on along the rail to edge Amen Hallelujah. The rail had been death valley for speed up to that point in the card.

The exacta, for two of the longer names you’ll find, returned $474 with the 2-to-1 underneath. The pick 3, which comprised the second through fourth legs of the Pick Six, paid $757.00.

Must say, this win came one race too late for me as I liked Champagne d’Oro in the Kentucky Oaks (G1) but left her out of the exotics here after she was 11th in the Oaks. I guess I’m too stressed by this 14-inning Yankee loss. Unbelievable.

The Manhattan is upcoming and they’re playing “The Sidewalks of New York.” I just can’t warm to Gio Ponti at 6-to-5 but I’m hardly thrilled with anyone else. I’m passing the sequence bets and will just try $2 to win on Strike a Deal (2) at 15-to-1 and Just as Well (9) at 5-to-1 and use 1,6 over 2,9 in a $1 exacta to have a rooting interest.

Good luck as the big race draws ever closer.

2:30m p.m.

You know it’s a long day when, the fifth race just ends and you’re still more than four hours away the main event.

Let’s focus now on the Belmont with a glance at the win odds. There’s currently a little more than $1.9 million in the pool

Ice Box is the favorite but at a surprisingly low 3-to-2.

Fly Down is next at 6-to-1, giving trainer Nick Zito the two favorites in the race. First Dude is 8-to-1.

There are 5 horses between 9-to-1 and 13-to-1, a pack that includes Uptowncharlybrown (9-to-1), Make Music for Me (11-to-1), Drosselmeyer (12-to-1), Dave in Dixie (12-to-1) and Stately Victor (13-to-1). Game On Dude is right behind them at 17-to-1.

The trailers are Spangled Star (20-to-1), Interactif (22-to-1) and Stay Put at (28-to-1).

Looking over those numbers, can’t say I expected to see 12-to-1 on Dave in Dixie. Thought he would be 25-to-1 or more, so there must be some steam or a lot guys named Dave from Alabama betting on him.

Also figured Stay Put would attract more attention. I guess the combination of Jamie Theriot having to navigate a mile-and-a-half trip around Belmont Park and me picking him are keeping the masses away.

Reviewing what we’ve seen so far, it’s been a pretty formful day. The first or second choice won three of the first four races and the third choice took the third. The fifth went to the longest price of the day, the Frank Angst special, Hoppsey ($18.20).

Horses closing from the back of the pack on the main track have been settling for third at best, yet it’s hard to base a firm conclusion on a trend when the best horses are hitting the wire first. We could be looking at the antithesis of a politician: a completely honest racetrack.

My picks haven’t been bad. Lost out on the third race doubles and pick three through the fourth, but did give out the $46 exacta in the third and had them 1-2 in the second for a $20.40 exacta.

Trying to get a jump start on the rest of the card, don’t think the Woody Stephens (G2) is much of a betting race, which no doubt would have disappointed old Woody. Eightyfiveinafifty is the choice, but can’t get too excited about 9-to-5 or lower.

There’s not much choice in the six-horse, five-betting-entries Just a Game (G1), but I’ll use the favorite, Proviso (5) with the longest shot in the field, Fantasia. Er, he’s 5-to-1.

The True North became mass confusuion with the scratch of Custom for Carlos, who hurt himself in his stall Friday night. Elusive Warning (7) will be my key in the race.

Speaking of confusion, ditto for the Acorn (G1). I’ll try to beat the favorites, Tidal Pool and Amen Hallelujah, with Buckleupbuttercup (9). Also think Dances With Ashley (3) is worth using in the exotics at 20-to-1. Just having a hard time putting together exacta combinations. I’m leaning toward a 3-9-13 box, tossing in Crisp, who owes me from the Kentucky Oaks (G1). Let’s wait to see what the odds are.

The Woodford Reserve is also driving me to drink. I think Gio Ponti (1) is not the same old Gio Ponti, but I’m having trouble finding someone to beat him. Court Vision (6) is the fastest of the rest, but I don’t think he’ll like the distance. After that, I’m lukewarm on Just as Well (9) and Strike a Deal (2) and will keep tabs on the toteboard.

In the Belmont, I’m in with Stay Put (10), followed by Ice Box (6), Make Music for Me (4) and Fly Down (5).

Some times the race after a Triple Crown can offer excellent and I’m hoping for that today.

I love Lt. John (1) in the 12th and hope the 9-to-2 price holds. Getting Budget in an entry with him is a nice bonus. I’m shaky on the exacta there but I’ll likely use Brad’s My Hero (8) in an exacta box with them. I’ll also take the 1 top and bottom over 8, Remittance (3), Medjool (4), Empty Handed (6) and J L Bernstein (10) in the exacta.

In the finale, if you haven’t called it a night by then, Quick Money (8) is the stickout as the 5-to-2 favorite. I’ll probably make a nice double bet with him and the 1 entry and toss in the 7, 4 and 10 with him as well in the doubles because they’ll be longshots.

I’ll check back with you later as the day moves along.

12:35 p.m.

OK, speed horses dominated the second race as Gracilla grabbed the lead, but could not hold off Tapaline, who was prompting the pace just outside.

Let’s see what else develops as the day goes on.

In the third, I like Oskar Hval, who seems poised to step up here, and Pierre Lapin, who had a sneaky good race in his last. Old Pierre made a good middle move into a woefully slow fraction in his last and only lost by less than four lengths. At 19-to-1 he’s definitely worth using in the exactas and trifectas.

I lost Cheyenne Nation to a scratch, so I’ll box those two with the 1 entry and use them both under the 1,4,6, 10 because I’m alive in the pick three and doubles.

More later.

Noon

So much for any notion that the rail will be a freeway to the winner’s circle. In today’s opener, I Got Swagger, the second choice, bolted to the lead and cuts to the inside. The favorite, Seis de Mayo took chase after him. They ran 1-2 on the turn through a modest half-mile in 46.65 seconds.

If the inside was golden you would think at least one of them would have hit the board. So we might now be able to scratch that notion for now because neither of them was around at the finish.

The third choice, Camptown Blues, made a three-wide move on the turn and waltzed to victory over 30-to-1 shot Smooth Kahula.

Prince Cody was third and my exacta tickets were ripped up

That running style should help the favorite, Tapaline (2), who is 7-to-5 right now. She’s the fastest filly in the field by far and should be able to stalk the leaders.

Two possible wake-ups loom the main threats. Gracilla (7) adds lasix after wilting at 5-to-1 odds in her debut. She’s 7-to-2 today and could atone for that dismal start.

Aprilmayjune (3) had trouble at the start in her career debut and wound up sixth. She’s been freshened sine that April 18 start and might be tougher in this spot at 13-to-1 odds.

I’m intrigued by a couple of longshots in the third, Pierre Lapin (2) and Oskar Hval (5) and think the favorite in that race, Cheyenne Nation (7) will be formidable. So I’m going to try some doubles and triples.

I’ll box 2-3-7 with 2-5-7 in the doubles, throwing some extra money on the combinations with Tapaline. Then let’s use some of that cash from Friday on a 2-3-7 with 2-5-7 with 2-8 pick three.

Good luck to us all.

11:20 p.m.
Good morning, folks, and welcome to sunny Belmont Park where everything seems in place for a great day of racing.

Let’s get this Belmont Stakes Day card started by going over the changes. Favored Custom for Carlos has been scratched from the True North (G2), making that a wide-open race. Strasbourg was also scratched out of that race.

In addition, Hot Trip was scratched from the Acorn (G1).

The horses are on the track for the first race, a rather forgettable $15,000 claimer for New Yor State-breds. Seis de Mayo is the 6-to-5 favorite, but I’ll try to beat him with I Got Swagger at 7-to-2 and Prince Cody at 10-to-1.

The key part of this race will be watching to see if the track will be lightning-fast and favor speed.

More later.