The 94th running of the Jockey Club Gold Cup Invitational on Saturday will feature a half dozen winners of stake races. Woodrow Wilson was president, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 660 and Sir Barton became the first Triple Crown winner when Belmont Park inaugurated the Gold Cup. The year was 1919. The winner: Purchase. The purse: […]
The Travers is horse racing history personified – dating back to when Saratoga Race Course was in its second year and Honest Abe Lincoln was president of the divided United States. The so-called “Mid-Summer Derby” is the oldest stakes race for 3-year-olds in our great land. The racetrack is located in Saratoga Springs, about 160 […]
Losing the Belmont Stakes favorite to injury the day before the race casts an unequivocal gloom over Belmont Park. Lately, horse racing in New York has been taking a lot of punches. Following a state crackdown on the industry, threats of a union strike, and pending government overhaul of the association that operates the state’s […]
Coming in shocking style this morning, Belmont Stakes favorite I’ll Have Another scratched from the Belmont Stakes tomorrow, officially ending his pursuit of the Triple Crown. In an interview, trainer Doug O’Neil cited tendonitis in his front left leg that was severe enough to keep him from running for history. O’Neil also shared that they […]
I have to say that I’ll Have Another has been interesting. Doug O’Neill has captivated me with his lingo, and Mario Gutierrez has been an inspiration for every small track rider around the world. Now, toss in Mr. Reddam who was asked if he made more money on the purse, or did he do better […]
Tight security measures for the 2012 Belmont Stakes starters have many wondering how settled in and comfortable the horses have been in the days leading up to the race. Their detention barn type of lockdown is nothing permanent, and in less than a week, they will most likely be moved out and moving on. For […]
The 144th Belmont Stakes: Pretenders, Maybes and Contenders I’ll Have Another undoubtedly will be heavily favored in the 144th Belmont Stakes on Saturday, like seven of the past 11 horses since 1979 that had a shot at immortality. But those odds-on favorites failed to visit the winner’s circle at the end of 1 ½ miles. […]
Belmont Stakes Honored Track Founder’s Old Friend Flamboyant financier Leonard W. Jerome and well-heeled friends, including banker August Belmont Sr., built a racetrack in the Bronx that opened on Sept. 25, 1866. The crowd at Jerome Park, named for its founder, included Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and members of New York’s fashionable society. It was […]
With the Belmont getting closer by the minute, I have really been thinking about how special this year could be. There has been no Triple Crown winner since 1978, and man are we really due. The race is beginning to take shape, and a few stories have caught my eye. 2012 could be the year […]
Another 3-Year-Old Chases Elusive Triple Crown By GREG MELIKOV Nineteen times since World War II horses went into the Belmont Stakes and a possible date with destiny to become a Triple Crown champion. Nineteen times the racing gods crushed dreams since 1944 when Pensive lost by a half-length to Bounding Home. Actually, Belmont Park has […]