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The path to the Triple Crown got a little easier for Big Brown this morning when Casino Drive, his top challenger in the Belmont Stakes, was scratched from the race. A stone bruise in the colt's left hind foot discovered yesterday is the reason for the scratch. Spokesman Nobutaka Tada says that the scratch is simply precautionary as the injury is "minor." Casino Drive was fine during a 3/8 mile jog in the early morning, but was apparently favoring a hoof when receiving a bath afterwards. Trainer Kazuo Fujisawa had given the all-clear, saying "he is sound" after the run, but an hour later, he made the decision to scratch the horse. He is scheduled to fly back to Japan on Tuesday, but may return to the United States for the Breeders Cup later in the year. It was a horse named "Birdstone" that spoiled the last Triple Crown attempt - will an injury called a "Stone Bruise" help Big Brown's attempt?
About an hour after giving the all-clear for Casino Drive to run in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I), trainer Kazuo Fujisawa said the colt was favoring his left rear hoof and was scratched from the classic. Earlier, Fujisawa was all smiles after watching Casino Drive canter three furlongs and gave a thumbs up for colt to run in the Belmont. But when the colt was being bathed following the exercise regimen, he was favoring his foot and the trainer decided to scratch. "He is sound," Fujisawa declared earlier, after watching Casino Drive leave the track following a three furlong canter. Winner of the Peter Pan (gr. II) at Belmont, Casino Drive is considered one of the leading contenders to upset Big Brown's Triple Crown quest. ......more
Casino Drive was scratched from the Belmont Stakes hours before the final leg of the Triple Crown on Saturday morning due to a bruised left hind hoof. Racing manager Nobutaka Tada said Casino Drive was fine during a three-furlong jog early Saturday, but he appeared to be favoring the hoof while receiving a bath following the workout......more
Today is the day we have been waiting for. 278 days ago he blew away a maiden field at Saratoga and today Big Brown will try and win for the sixth straight time and become Horse Racing's twelfth Triple Crown Winner. He would be the first to do it since Affirmed accomplished the feat 30 years ago. Casino Drive, Big Brown's biggest rival, now has a bruised hoof and not many are giving the other eight contenders a chance. Post time is at 6:25pm in New York and it will be broadcast live on ABC (coverage staring at 5pm ET).
OK, Big Brown. It's time for the big date with history. All the obstacles in the colt's spectacular bid for the first Triple Crown in 30 years are fading faster than the pack in his Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes victories. Big Brown's quarter crack is patched and the sturdy hoof that helped him stampede to an undefeated record is as strong as ever. Big Brown's biggest challenger is injured with a suspect hind hoof, leaving mostly longshots in a lackluster field. Up ahead, the chance to knock off Affirmed from his spot as the sport's last Triple Crown winner......more
Holding out on this one for a few weeks, but today is the day to post it:
In a day that we expected the patching of Big Brown's hoof to be the only "hoof" news - there is bigger news out of the stable of his primary rival. Casino Drive, Big Browns strongest challenger for the Belmont Stakes, has a bruised left hind hoof which kept him from his friday workout, but he is still expected to start in the Belmont Stakes on Saturday. A veterinarian believes that he may have stepped on a stone or kicked something Friday morning. He was treated on Friday afternoon by standing in a tub of salts and stable spokesman Nobutaka Tada says that the hoof appeared to improve. The colt will be reexamined on Saturday morning. Tada added that if he was not well on Saturday they would scratch him. The connections feel strongly about running him in the race as they have often said that he was bred for this race. Tada told reporters that the injury did not cme during his less-than-stellar workout on Thursday under Edgar Prado.
...."He's OK. He's doing well, and better than he was this morning," stable spokesman Nobutaka Tada said at 6 p.m. Friday in the press box at Belmont Park. "Right now, we are in. We haven't scratched him. If he stays like he is now, there's nothing to stop him. We just missed jogging this morning, that's all.".....more
....“We have not yet scratched him from the race,” Tada said outside Barn 17. “There is nothing stopping us at this moment and we are not thinking of scratching. We think it might be a small stone bruise and we will watch it closely. “It is very minor,” he said. “We detected it when he walked before he was going to the track. We noticed it when he was picking it up higher. We felt it and it was warmer than the other feet.”.....more
...."This morning, we're not 100 percent happy with the hind legs, how he moves," said Nobutaka Tada, racing manager for owner Hidetoshi Yamamoto. "We didn't go to the track with him. There's a slight possibility of a stone bruise, and we're just cooling him down now. It's not lame, just something different with the way he walks. We expect him to run.".....more
Hoof specialist Ian McKinaly patched Big Brows cracked hoof with an acrylic and fiberglass patch today. He said the procedure which took just a half-hour was "very routine." He called Big Brown a "super patient" and said that he never even knew he was hurt. He said he would not need to look at the hoof for a few months. When asked if the patch could fall off during the race, he said that if it did he may as well quit.
...Hoof specialist Ian McKinlay applied an acrylic and fiberglass patch to the cracked left front foot Friday. The work comes the day before the undefeated colt races in the Belmont Stakes. McKinlay says the procedure was routine and Big Brown never even knew he was hurt. .....more
...Hoof specialist Ian McKinlay applied an acrylic and fiberglass patch to the cracked left front foot Friday. The work comes the day before the undefeated colt races in the Belmont Stakes. McKinlay says the procedure was routine and Big Brown never even knew he was hurt. .....more
There will be nine horses heading to the gate on Saturday to try and beat Big Brown and they all hope they have a chance. The one fact that they all cling to is that the 1 1/2 mile race may be too long for Big Brown and just right for one of them. We will all know soon enough.
Rick Dutrow Jr. spent the past three weeks trash-talking every horse Big Brown will face in his attempt to become racing's first Triple Crown champion in 30 years. Two of the sports top trainers, each with a Belmont Stakes victory in the past four years, would like to hush the ultra-confident Dutrow. Nick Zito will try to play Triple Crown spoiler a second time when he sends out 30-1 long shots Anak Nakal and Da' Tara in Saturday's Belmont. Zito's Birdstone thwarted Smarty Jones' Triple try in the 2004 Belmont. Todd Pletcher won last year's Belmont with the filly Rags to Riches, and goes for a second straight with Ready's Echo, also 30-1......more
These are just a few commentaries that have been made around the world about Big Brown and how his pursuit will and should impact American Thoroughbred Racing.
Big Brown heads to the starting gate on Saturday for the Belmont Stakes with a chance at becoming the 12th horse ever to win U.S. racing's Triple Crown, and the first since Affirmed in 1978. It's a feat that used to be among the most celebrated in sports, and past winners have become worldwide sensations. The industry hopes it's Big Brown's turn, if only to return some luster to a sport that could desperately use a public-relations boost. The pieces, it seems, are in place......more
.....The Belmont should therefore be a festive and even transformative time in US racing: the unbeaten superstar with the name that delights children, racing for a place in history and giving a struggling industry a much-needed boost along the way. Sadly however, the rise of Big Brown has done more to lay bare the sleazy side of US racing than anything in recent memory. The horse's connections have been identified with drugs, dishonesty and a racing culture that seems to disrespect and endanger the animals the public love......more
Michael Iavarone, the part-owner of Big Brown, the colt who will attempt to complete the American Triple Crown in New York tonight, said last week that he had "already gotten a lot of requests" to film the story of his horse's life. It is not difficult to see why. If he wins the Belmont Stakes Big Brown will be the first Triple Crown winner for 30 years, and in his background there are enough colourful personalities and plotlines to employ every character actor in Hollywood. But what sort of movie will it be, assuming that the enormous bay colt, who is expected to start the 2-5 favourite, wins as his odds suggest he should? A feel-good family film, perhaps, in which Richard Dutrow Jr, Big Brown's trainer, rises from the gutter to achieve one of the great feats in American sport? Or will it be the R-rated version of the story, which involves murder, drugs, death at the Kentucky Derby and a feud between a father and his son that Richard Dutrow Sr carried to his grave?.....more
People in the racing business hope every year to see a Triple Crown winner who can stimulate the public's and the media's interest in the sport. Big Brown's bid to make history has indeed attracted widespread attention, but it has often been attention that the industry doesn't want, because the 2008 Triple Crown has sometimes shown racing at its worst......more
Though the odds were stacked against him when he was born in April 2005, Big Brown will be a short-priced favorite Saturday when he tries to win the Triple Crown by taking the Belmont Stakes. In the year of their birth, none of the 11 Triple Crown winners faced as daunting a numerical barrier as Big Brown, who is one of 38,191 registered thoroughbreds born in North America in 2005......more
Can glory expunge tragedy? Such is the question for American racing as it approaches the climax of its season, poised uncertainly between these twin extremes of sport and life......more
The Americans love a wonder horse. Man O'War, Secretariat, Seabiscuit, Kelso and Seattle Slew are all legendary figures in stateside sporting culture and it appears that another flyer may be about to join them in the pantheon......more
....Does Billy Turner think that Rick Dutrow will follow in his footsteps, and that Big Brown will follow in Seattle Slew’s? Like Dutrow, Turner looks you dead in the eye. “It’s time,” he said. “It really is.".....more
....Casino Drive, Denis of Cork, Tale of Ekati, and others, are expected to show up to face Big Brown in the Belmont Stakes. If they do, a case can be made Big Brown will be at least as worthy as Sir Barton and Gallant Fox if he beats them decisively.....more
...."He moves me." Dutrow points out Big Brown's birthmark, a rare speck of white fuzz above his front left leg, and lovingly strokes his right ear. "He acts like he's one of us," Dutrow says. "Like he wants to be one of us."Horsemen love hyperbole and ascribing human traits to their beloved breed. But Dutrow's not the only one falling for Big Brown.....more
weeping the Triple Crown isn’t the culmination of a democratic process; it isn’t up to the voters to decide if Big Brown is worthy of being a Triple Crown winner. Nor will a panel of judges determine the outcome of the Belmont Stakes. It’s not ice skating. That’s the beauty of horse racing – or one of its many beauties: Races are won on the track. If Big Brown succeeds in the Belmont, he’s worthy of being a Triple Crown winner; if he doesn’t, he isn’t. It’s simple.....more
While the eyes of racing are squarely focused on Big Brown for the 133rd Preakness Stakes on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course, the eyes of the sports world are squarely focused on horse racing......more
....All sports find themselves, to varying degrees, always in search of the "Next Great Thing." But this is perhaps more true in horse racing than in any other sport because the game is so memorably defined by the epic performances of a small number of superstars. This rapidly aging generation remembers (most of all) Secretariat (and his Belmont), Seattle Slew and Affirmed (alongside Alydar), the three Triple Crown champions of the 70s, growing collectively smaller in the rear-view mirror but larger in the mind......more
Jim Militello interviews NYRA's John Lee about the possibility of a Triple Crown - June 6
One of many YouTube.com tributes - Jesse Goldberg's musical tribute:
The New York Racing Association announced on Friday that the Hooters restaurant chain will not be allowed to sponsor Jockey Kent Desormeaux. The NYRA said that it would be a conflict with a competing sponsor. Hooters VP of Marketing, Mike McNeil, was clearly displeased with the decision indicating that no conflict existed earlier in the week when the deal was made. He added that their treatment of Desormeaux (allegedly threatening him with fines and suspension) was "just mean."
....The New York Racing Association told Hooters on Friday that the chain won't be allowed to sponsor Desormeaux because of a conflict with a competing NYRA sponsor. NYRA told the owners of the chain it would announce a new sponsor before the race. Hooters said no conflict existed when the owners submitted for sponsorship earlier this week......more
Exercise Rider Michelle Nevin galloped almost the entire mile and a half around the Belmont track this morning as Big Brown got his final workout before tomorrows Belmont Stakes.
Big Brown hit the track June 6 for his final gallop before looking to make history in tomorrow's $1-million Belmont Stakes (gr.I). After the harrowing break at 8:45 a.m., Big Brown, with exercise rider Michelle Nevin aboard, galloped nearly the circumference of the 1 1/2-mile Belmont oval......more
Lenny Shulman reporting on the workout for Bloodhorse.com:
"Home video" of Big Brown and Michelle Nevin around the track:
Forecasts are for temperatures possibly reaching 90 degrees tomorrow at Belmont Park in what would be the hottest day so far this year. John Lee, Director of Media Relations for the NYRA says that the track is prepared. Heat definitely affects race horses and could be a factor, but Big Brown Trainer Richard Dutrow said yesterday that heat will not be a factor for his horse.
....Like humans, horses perspire in sultry weather, and their sweat often looks like shaving cream on their necks and between their legs. Although sweating is normal, handicappers avoid betting horses dripping with perspiration, which saps their energy and makes them perform below par. A few days after the Preakness, trainer Rick Dutrow said Triple Crown hopeful Big Brown is a fresh horse because he's raced only five times in his career and hasn't run or trained in extreme heat this year. "I can't imagine [heat] being a factor; none whatsoever," Dutrow said yesterday. "Not for our horse. I don't know about the other horses."more
Big Brown's quest to become the first Triple Crown winner in three decades will not be affected by the stifling heat predicted for Saturday's Belmont Stakes, the colt's trainer said Thursday. Temperatures for the highly anticipated $1 million race were expected to top the 90-degree (32 Celsius) mark. "I can't imagine (the heat) being a factor. None whatsoever," trainer Richard Dutrow, Jr. told reporters. "Not for our horse. I don't know about the other horses.".....more
After all of the waiting, the Belmont Stakes is just one day away, but Big Brown has a full day ahead of him. Friday, he is scheduled to gallop on the Belmont track some time after the 8:45 am break and then will have his hoof patched sometime in the afternoon. According to trainer Richard Dutrow, hoof specialist Ian McKinlay will apply the patch some time in the afternoon when "you guys (the press) ain't around".
....Big Brown is scheduled to gallop June 6, probably after the break at 8:45 a.m., according to Dutrow. Hoof specialist Ian McKinlay will patch the quarter crack on Big Brown’s left front foot the afternoon of June 6. Dutrow said the quarter crack is “dry. We could run him the way he is.” The trainer estimated it would take 45 minutes to an hour to place the patch on the foot. “As long as it looks the way it does now, we are going to patch it,” Dutrow said. “We (will do it) when there is no noise around and you guys ain’t around. We’ll take care of it then.”.....more
Most in the Horse Racing Industry seem to agree that the injury to Big Brown's hoof is minor and should not play a factor in Saturday's Belmont Stakes, but most also seem to feel that Richard Dutrow and the Big Brown team are likely downplaying the injury. Concerns that racing Big Brown is putting his life in jeopardy are clearly outlandish, but reports that he is as "good as new" are also not correct. His hoof will be patched on Friday afternoon by hoof specialist Ian McKinlay. An Acrylic adhesive will be applied and McKinlay says that it will make the area stronger than the hoof itself.
...."When you're talking about an injury that Big Brown is dealing with right now, a quarter-crack type injury, it's more an annoyance to a horse than anything else," ABC-ESPN analyst Randy Moss said. "It's not something along the lines that would lead to what you saw in Derby with Eight Belles or anything such as that. It's something that can cause some minor discomfort to a horse, and in a worst-case scenario could prevent him from maybe putting out the full 100 percent of effort. I'm confident that they're on top of this, although I will agree they're probably downplaying the significance of it a little bit compared to what the actual reality of the situation is.".....more
...."We could run him the way he is, but we're going to patch it up," trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. said yesterday. "We're not taking any kind of risk by patching him up right now."Others aren't so quick to dismiss the condition. While it may not seem like much for a fit thoroughbred, missing a few days of training can take a horse off his game. And if the injury is even a touch more than the Big Brown camp claims, it easily can be exposed in the gruelling Belmont. "I'm a firm believer (that) everything has to go right between races," veteran New York trainer Shug McGaughey said this week. "It's the third race in five weeks. It's a mile and a half. Big Brown, he looked great, but everything has not gone exactly right for him since the Preakness."......more
....So it was two weeks ago when Big Brown's trainer, Rick Dutrow, announced that the horse who had breezed to ridiculously easy wins in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes had a quarter crack in his left front hoof and would miss a few days of training. Ah, perhaps a sign of weakness. But yesterday, as he has done for the past several days, Dutrow emphasized that Big Brown couldn't be better......more
To know the story of Big Brown it is important to go back to the beginning and learn about the man responsible for getting his mom and dad together in the first place. Big Brown Breeder Dr. Gary B. Knapp. Knapp was once a college professor of marketing research before 1989 when he purchased the land that would become Monticule Farms in Kentucky. In April, 2004, for a sire fee of $10,000 he bred Boundary to a broodmare named Mien. The June 6th article below goes into detail about how math was used to make the match.
....When Knapp ran the numbers on his mare, Mien, the match for one particular stallion, Boundary, was through the roof. The product was Big Brown, although Knapp acknowledges no statistic could have foretold what the horse has pulled off. "I don't know where one would get the hubris to think they can breed a Kentucky Derby winner, so we don't think like that," he said. "We think, this is going to be a good racehorse.".....more
....Mien's owner, Dr. Gary Knapp, correctly assessed the possibilities of Bounday and Mien producing a special offspring. Knapp purchased the mare Miasma in foal (with Mien) at Keeneland's 1998 breeding sale. Miasma was sired by Lear Fan, who produced 892 offspring......more
UPDATE: Friday the NYRA told Hooters they will not be allowed to sponsor Desormeaux - posting above (June 6) It was announced today that Hooters will join in the sponsorship of Jockey Kent Desormeaux for Belmont Day. UPS had been the sole sponsor until the deal was announced. Kelly Wietsma, public relations manager for Desormeaux and IEAH, told the Daily news that UPS was given the opportunity to be an exclusive sponsor, but turned it down. Despite rumors to the contrary, no Hooters waitress will be present in the winners circle f Big Brown wins the race.
Contrary to previously published reports, no Hooters girls will join Big Brown in the winner's circle should he win the Triple Crown. "Reports of a corporate Hooters presence on the grounds and winners’ circle at Belmont Park are in error,” said Gavin Landry, a spokesman for the New York Racing Association (NYRA), which runs Belmont Park. “The reported sponsorship with Hooters has no contractual basis in fact with NYRA.".....more
Thursday, Richard Dutrow said that the quarter crack was "all healed." On Friday, hoof specialist Ian McKinlay will apply an acrylic and fiberglass patch to the cracked area.
...."It's all healed," trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. said Thursday. "We could run him the way he is." Not exactly. On Friday, hoof specialist Ian McKinlay will apply an acrylic and fiberglass patch to the cracked area. It sets in five minutes and is "stronger than the hoof itself," he said. That's certainly encouraging news for a sport still on edge after the death of Eight Belles on the track moments after her second-place finish at the Kentucky Derby. Even Dutrow's normally unshakable confidence was dented when he first saw the crack. "Naturally, we had to worry about it," he said.....more
Thursday morning, Casino Drive got his final workout before the Belmont Stakes on Saturday. The unorthodox japanese style work again resulted in an unusual half mile time of a little over 55 seconds. Edgar prado, who was not supposed to ride Casino Drive until the Belmont Stakes was given the chance to ride him in this workout during which Casino Drive sat behind Stablemate Spark Candle until a move past him at the 1/16th pole.
Casino Drive had another “work” Thursday morning. As part of his unorthodox, by American standards, training program he worked a half mile in a little over 55 seconds. Edgar Prado was given the mount for this move. It had earlier been reported that Prado would not ride Casino Drive until the Belmont......more
Lenny Shulman reporting on the workout for Bloodhorse.com:
Suffolk Downs race track is offering a $1 million participation bonus and $5 million purse if Big Brown and Curlin enter the Massachusetts Handicap undefeated and face off against each other on September 20th in East Boston. The race is 1 1/8 miles and carries a purse of $500,000. The additional purse money would be funded by Coastal Development LLC, a company controlled by Richard T. Fields, Suffolk's biggest shareholder.
...."Big Brown and Curlin are regarded as the two best thoroughbreds in the world and racing fans would like nothing more than to see them go head to head," said Fields. "If they are to square off, we feel that a $5 million purse is a great incentive and what better place than at Suffolk Downs in the city of Boston, the sports capital of the world."...more
Suffolk Downs in East Boston will offer a $5 million purse for this year’s Massachusetts Handicap if Big Brown sweeps the Triple Crown and both he and the 2007 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Curlin remain unbeaten in 2008 and agree to face each other......more
Edgar Prado is part of many of the subplots of the Belmont Stakes. Namely, he will ride Casino Drive, the strongest challenger to Big Brown's victory chances. Twice (2002 and 2004) in the last six years, Prado has been aboard a long-shot Triple Crown Spoiler in the Belmont Stakes.He beat War Emblem aboard Sarava in 2002 and beat Smarty Jones as the jockey for Birdstone in 2004. The more intriguing and less frequently reported footnote for Prado is that twice he missed chances to have been Big Brown's jockey. First, in September of last year, Prado was scheduled to ride Big Brown for his debut at Saratoga, but broke his ankle in a spill two days before the race. Jeremy Rose was chosen to replace him. Then, when Richard Dutrow became trainer Prado had a chance to work Big Brown three times at the training center in Florida and it appeared Prado would get his second chance. But, Michael Iavarone of IEAH had dinner with Kent Desormeaux one evening and decided that "Kent fit the horse." Dutrow disagreed with the decision and later even said "Prado's my man." But the drama grew more in the Preakness when Prado was aboard Riley Tucker and Dutrow publicly accused him of trying to box in Big Brown. Finally, after a prolonged search process, Nobutaka Tada, racing manager for Casino Drive named Prado as their rider. Incentives abound for Prado to become a Triple Crown Spoiler for a third time.
Pay attention to Edgar Prado Saturday. He's the most intriguing human in the 140th running of the Belmont Stakes. He's the two-legged King of the Spoilers, a jockey who twice in this decade has climbed aboard worse horses than he'll ride in Saturday's race and nevertheless ruined someone else's Triple Crown hopes, same as he'll try to shatter heavily favored Big Brown's chances. The difference for Prado this year? This race might be personal. Prado wouldn't admit that the other day after he strode out of the winner's circle at Belmont after the second of a typically busy seven-race day for him at his home track. Nor will Big Brown trainer Rick Dutrow and owner Michael Iavarone concede that Saturday's 11/2-mile test could darken into a grudge match, even if it was Iavarone who made the call to put Kent Desormeaux atop Big Brown this spring, against Dutrow's wishes and to Prado's surprise. .....more
Prado did it twice before, beating War Emblem with Sarava in 2002 and topping Smarty Jones with Birdstone in 2004. That's two of the past three Triple tries, and he did it with two long shots. This time, Prado will be riding perhaps the biggest threat to Big Brown, the 2-5 morning-line favourite, with Casino Drive the 7-2 second choice in the field of 10 3-year-olds......more
New York Times reporter Joe Drape wrote today that Richard Dutrow had not given Big Brown Steroids since April 15th. If this is the case, some experts are indicating that this would mean a win at the Belmont Stakes would be "steroids-free." Dutrow has also reduced Big Brown's dose of electrolytes.
....Gary Wadler, a New York University medical professor and antidoping expert, said that if you took Dutrow’s claims at face value, that Big Brown has not received steroids since mid-April, then it would be fair to argue that a victory in the Belmont Stakes, at least, could be considered steroid-free......more
....On the advice of Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel, Dutrow also reduced Big Brown's dose of electrolytes. "The horse looks like an absolute picture so I didn't want to mess with anything, you know," Dutrow said. Greg Bennett, Dutrow's primary veterinarian, said Thursday that a sterile solution of electrolytes is given intravenously by a stomach tube......more
The field is set for the Belmont Stakes on Saturday and Big Brown will leave from the number one post position of a ten horse field. He has been made a 2-5 favorite and Casino Drive will go off from the five position as a morning-line 7-2 second favorite. Belmont Park odds maker Eric Donovan has sent the message clearly that this should be a two horse race, tagging the third favorite, Denis of Cork, at 12-1. The number one post has produced the most Belmont winners since 1905 with 23 Champions coming from that post. Jockey Kent Desormeaux is generally happy with the spot commenting that Big Brown is so fast away from the gate that the race could be over "in 40 yards." One surprise entry in the field is Guadacanal who is still a maiden having never won a race before. The entire field shapes up like this:
Jockey Kent Desormeaux, whose flawless handling of the horse has Big Brown in position for the first Triple Crown in 30 years, said the inside was a better spot. "Absolutely, because it's an easier trip," he said. "I would be able to just guide and glide. Now, I'm going to have to jockey for position. He's so fast away from the gate, though, the race might be over in 40 yards." Surprise, surprise. Trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. said Big Brown would win no matter the post position......more
...."The shortest distance from the gate to the wire is on the rail," said Hall of Famer Jockey Jerry Bailey, a two-time Belmont winner. "Even though he might be good enough to go four- or five-wide on these turns, I wouldn't want to. What people forget is how long these turns are. If he were out there four- or five-wide, he would be giving away a lot of ground......more
Big Brown is a 2-5 favorite to win the 140th Belmont Stakes on June 7 and become thoroughbred racing's first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed 30 years ago. The undefeated colt will leave from the No. 1 post position in the 10-horse field at the longest of the Triple Crown races after winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes by a combined 10 lengths. .....more
Randy Moss reports on ESPN about the post position draw and Belmont in general:
Big Brown completed his final workout before the Belmont Stakes this morning running five furlongs in one minute flat in front of 200 media members and spectators. Exercise rider Michelle Nevin was aboard as usual taking him on the main track at about 8:50 am on a warm, humid morning at Belmont Park. All involved were very happy with the workout and felt that it went according to the plan; Michelle Nevin, who was admittedly nervous in anticipation of the big race commented that Trainer Richard Dutrow had asked her to "breeze him just like you do every other time." Hoof specialist, Ian McKinlay will wait until Friday to apply the patch to his healing hoof. Dutrow says that he is right on track and that the hoof held up well in the workout. He commented "he jumped over a big hurdle today." McKinlay had positive comments about the recovery and explained the simple process he will go through on Friday to patch the injury. He also took time today to defend Richard Dutrow and the sport of Horse Racing, squashing comments that the horses life was being put in jeopardy by running him in the Belmont Stakes.
When it's showtime, Big Brown always comes through. The Kentucky Derby/Preakness winner pleased his connections and about 200 media members and spectators Tuesday in his only official workout for the Belmont Stakes. The superstar colt breezed 5 furlongs in a minute flat for exercise rider Michelle Nevin on a warm, humid morning at Belmont Park......more
Big Brown's cracked left front hoof is improving daily and held up well Tuesday in his final workout before the Belmont Stakes and his bid for the Triple Crown......more
ESPN's Jeannie Edwards reports on final workout and more:
Dutrow and McKinlay's comments can be heard in this AP report:
IEAH President Michael Iavarone confirmed today that all involved are expecting to run Big Brown in Breeders Cup Classic, despite great speculation that he will be retired after the Belmont Stakes. The anticipation of a Curlin vs. Big Brown race would certainly catch the attention of the racing world. Iavarone also hopes that it will help deflect attention away from his less than clean past. He also took the opportunity to point out that everyone was "looking for garbage," but no one was discussing all of the good that IEAH has done in the last few years including charity gifts and the building of a veterinary Hospital.
...“Everybody thinks we’re going to retire him, but we’re going on,” Iavarone said. “I’ve already spoken to everyone involved and we’re going to give racing a shot. We’re definitely going to point him for the Breeders’ Cup Classic (gr. I). I just don’t know if Curlin is going to want to run against us or not on a synthetic surface.”.....more
Casino Drive and his Japanese connections have brought drama, intrigue and some unorthodox practices to Belmont Park. His workout routine is something that is not seen in America and is turning heads at the track.
Each morning, Casino Drive is saddled up and ridden along the backside of Belmont Park. For an hour, he darts between barns, sends puffs of dirt in the air as he clip-clops down shady paths and garners admiring stares from the most hard-bitten of horsemen. When Casino Drive, a chestnut colt, finally hits the racetrack for a gallop, he swallows the ground with his giant strides......more
....The way Casino Drive is training for the Belmont has raised eyebrows. It is a unique approach, by U.S. standards. Most American-based horses prepare for races with jogs, gallops and workouts on the track. Casino Drive, in contrast, is a power walker, taking vigorous one-hour strolls through the barn area. He then goes to the track for an easy jog before resuming another hour of walking. "We really try to pick his feet up," said Nobutaka Tada, spokesman for owner Hidetoshi Yamamoto and trainer Kazuo Fujisawa. "We want him to be ready, so he will be strong.".....more
Hoof specialist Ian McKinlay decided that Big Brown did not need a patch on his quarter crack before his workout on Tuesday, but will patch him the morning of the race, Saturday. Big Brown is expected to breeze five furlongs under excersie rider michelle Nevin in his only official Belmont prep workout. McKinlay is very confident that the quarter crack will heal on its own. Dutrow and McKinlay explained that the longer they wait, the better off he will be. "It is in absolutely perfect shape, McKinalay added, "he looks like a million bucks." Presumably, he means to say that Big Brown looks great; this was an excusable and accidental understatement as $1,000,000 would mean Big Brown was at "less than 2%" (he is insured for $50,000,000 and is worth much more).
...“I’m going to breeze him just the way he is and give him more time to let Ian (hoof specialist McKinlay) put the patch on the day before the race,” Dutrow said. “The longer we wait the better. As long as he gallops and trains like he did today that’s exactly what we’re going to do......more
The hoof specialist Ian McKinlay says that Big Brown, the Kentucky Derby and Preakness champ, does not need a patch on the quarter crack on his left front hoof until the morning of the Belmont Stakes. So the trainer Rick Dutrow will give Big Brown his final hard workout Tuesday without it and gallop him into the race confident the colt’s tender hoof is healed......more
...When he goes out, he stands, he's surveying, he's looking to see what's going on. . . . He's very, very confident and proud of himself. When he sees the other horses in the paddock, he's just gonna fluff them off like a bunch of clowns knowing that he's got 'em in his pocket......more
On Sunday, the expected field of the Belmont Stakes dropped from eleven to nine as Tomcito and Spark Candle were removed from the list of hopefuls. Tomcito, who finished 3rd in the Kentucky Derby was withdrawn from contention because of congestion and Spark Candle was entered in a Grade III stakes race on Friday. Spark Candle is the stablemate of Big Brown's closest challenger, Casino Drive.
Tomcito, third to Big Brown in the Florida Derby, had some congestion on Sunday morning and was declared from the race, trainer Dante Zanelli Jr. said. Zanelli said that the owner, Jet Set Racing Stable, was likely to move the horse to another New York-based trainer and Zanelli would return to his Lexington, Ky., base. Also, Spark Candle, a stablemate of probable Belmont second choice Casino Drive, was entered and is scheduled to run in Friday's Grade 3, $100,000 Hill Prince at one mile on the turf at Belmont......more
Jan-Feb 2007: Big Brown develops a quartercrack in his other foot and is forced to miss more time, jeopardizing a try at the Triple Crown
Dec 22, 2007: With the quartercrack fixed, Big Brown breezes six furlongs on the dirt at Palm Meadows in 1:13 3/5, outworking Diamond Stripes and giving Dutrow great hope for the 3-year old season
Oct-Dec 2007: Big Brown joins stable of Trainer Rick Dutrow, who breezes the colt on the turf in preparation for Breeders Cup Juvenile Turf, but he is sidelined with a quartercrack in his foot
Sept, 2007: 75% stake of Big Brown purchased in a private sale for around $3.5 million by IEAH Stables
Sept 3, 2007: Big Brown wins debut by 11 1/4 lengths as a 15/1 longshot on the turf at Saratoga
Apr-Sept 2007: Owner Paul Pompa Jr names Big Brown as a celebration of the contract Renewal between UPS Freight and his Brooklyn-based trucking company, Truck-Rite Corp.
April 17, 2007: Big Brown Purchased at Keenland Auction for $190,000 by Paul Pompa Jr., who had owned half-brother Snake River for one race.
Oct 24, 2006: Big Brown Purchased at Faisig Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale for $60,000.
April 10, 2005: Bay Colt Big Brown foaled
2004: for a sire fee of $10,000 Boundary is bred in Kentucky by Dr. Gary B Knapp's Monticule Farms to a broodmare named Mien
