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Big Brown drew the inside post in the 140th Belmont Stakes and was established as the morning line 2-5 favorite on Wednesday.
The colt could go off at even lower odds on Saturday after his bullet breeze of a minute for five furlongs 24 hours earlier on Belmont Park’s main track. Rick Dutrow Jr. pronounced the son of Boundary fit and ready to become the 12th Triple Crown winner.
Six of the past 10 horses since 1979 that had a shot at immortality also were odds-on favorites, but finished second three times, third twice and fourth.
The closest to pulling it off was Real Quiet in ‘98 who fell a nose short. Ironically, Kent Desormeaux was aboard the runner-up that day — Big Brown’s rider.
While Dutrow told BloodHorse.com before the draw he preferred an outside post, he didn’t appear disturbed that his horse will break from No. 1. “I just can’t see a post getting him beat. It doesn’t matter what post he drew. He is much better than these horses.”
Since Belmont Stakes records have been kept since ‘05, the inside post produced the most winners: 23. The last winner to draw the rail was Empire Maker in ‘03.
The early second choice at 7-2 is Casino Drive, the Peter Pan winner, who drew No. 5, the next winningest post tied with No. 3, with 13 victories. Jockey Edgar Prado, who will ride the son of Mineshaft, is going for his third Belmont Stakes win as a Triple Crown spoiler.
On Friday, Casino Drive came up with what his camp called a minor problem in his left hind leg believed to be a small stone bruise, but stressed no thoughts about scratching were entertained.
The last time the Belmont Stakes field numbered 10 was ‘89 when Easy Goer dashed odds-on Sunday Silence’s TC dreams.
Others going 1 1/2 miles, with their post, odds and jockey, are:
2. Guadalcanal, 50-1, Javier Castellano
3. Macho Again, 20-1, Garrett Gomez
4. Denis of Cork, 12-1, Robby Albarado
6. Da’ Tara, 30-1, Alan Garcia
7. Tale of Ekati, 20-1, Eibar Coa
8. Anak Nakal, 30-1, Julien Leparoux
9. Ready’s Echo, 30-1, John Velazquez
10. Icabad Crane, 20-1, Jeremy Rose
In the Tuesday workout, Big Brown’s early fractions were 23 3/5 for the quarter-mile and 35 1/5 for the three-eighths. He galloped out the six furlongs in 1:14 2/5.
Even better news: how well the horse’s quarter crack is healing. On Friday afternoon, the stainless steel wire sutures will be removed and a patch applied.
Dutrow, analyzing the Belmont Stakes, said: “We got the one-hole, as long as we break good, I see us as getting a good trip. There is not a lot of speed in the race. If we need our horse early on, he’s there for us. Depending on how they all come out of the gate together . . . Kent will know what to do. It’s a simple thing.”
Desormeaux added: “I’m obviously going to have to jostle for position coming from the one-hole. It takes me out a little bit out of control.”
Rose, the only other jockey to have ridden Big Brown, recalled the horse’s debut last fall at another New York track.
“The competition is so good at Saratoga,” he pointed out. “They said to stay with the field before you start to widen. At Saratoga, that’s usually not an issue because there’s so many good horses around you. But we found out why they said that to me. He’s very, very talented.”
Big Brown led at every call of the 1 1/16 miles on the grass to win by 11 1/4 lengths after breaking from the inside post.
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