Posted on 06/07/2014 4:14:03 PM PDT by kingattax
The longest wait in sports is not over.
California Chrome's bid to become the first horse to win the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978 fell short in Saturday's Belmont Stakes.
After winning both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes by a length and a half, the mile-and-a-half Belmont proved to be too much for Chrome, who finished fourth to winner Tonalist.
And with that, the longest drought in Triple Crown history continues.
Since Affirmed's sweep 36 years ago, 13 horses now have gone to Belmont Park with the Derby and Preakness in hand only to falter somehow, some way. Real Quiet was nipped at the wire in 1998; War Emblem stumbled out of the gate in 2002; Smarty Jones faltered down the stretch in '04; and I'll Have Another was scratched with an injury the day before the race in '12.
Now add Chrome's fade down the stretch to the list.
Still, it was an impressive run for Chrome, especially considering the horse's backstory: a modest pedigree, blue-collar owners, 77-year-old trainer who'd never sniffed a Triple Crown start until now and jockey who was believed to be past his prime.
(Excerpt) Read more at sports.yahoo.com ...
The TC today was never really solidified until the ‘70s. Yes, all races were independently important. There were no rules about it, it is a completely artificial construct of fans and journalists.
Sir Barton ran the Derby 4 days before the Preakness. Gallant Fox ran the Preakness before the Derby. Typically the Derby was ONE week before Preakness, and the Belmont FOUR weeks after Preakness. So, tough horses of old ran a race or two in between those “TC” events.
It’s BS that a horse couldn’t handle even two weeks between big races.
Here are the terms of qualifying for the Belmont Stakes:
The Belmont field will be limited to sixteen (16) starters. In the event more than 16 entries pass through the entry box at the closing, the starters will be determined at the closing with the first eight (8) starters given preference by accumulating the highest earnings in Graded Sweepstakes at a mile or over. For purposes of this preference, the graded status of each race shall be the Grade assigned by the International Cataloguing Standards Committee in Part 1 of The International Cataloguing Standards as published annually by The Jockey Club Information Systems, Incorporated. The next five (5) starters will be determined by accumulating the highest earnings in all non-restricted sweepstakes. “Non-restricted sweepstakes” shall mean those sweepstakes whose conditions contain non-restrictions other than age or sex. The remaining three (3) starters shall be determined by accumulating the highest earnings in all races.
You also have a valid point, but consider that since probably Secretariat, someone(s) have been thinking about ways to game the system. Horse people are like that - I know.
Once upon a time the crown was run by horses that went the whole distance. Not so much any more, for various reasons. Mostly money related.
And putting fresh horse into a race that haven’t gone the distance, is well, not Kosher. IMHO.
Tell that to Man O’War.
He ran on 2 days and 2 weeks and in between commonly, ALL stakes, and set track to world records doing so. No, Secretariat never did that but by then they were starting to wimp out with horses and coddle them
Low-level racers still commonly run in 1 week increments. The perk of latter-day stake horses seems to be they get to run less.
See my other post.
actually..Secretariats Belmont time of 2:24 flat is not only the stakes and track record, its also the world record that still stands. He shaved 2 full seconds off the the record that day...also, his Kentucky Derby time for a mile and a quarter was 1:59 and 2/5ths....the only sub 2 minute Derby ever. His time at a mile and a quarter in the Belmont was an astonishing 1:59 flat. In the 12 furlong Belmont..he ran the first 6 furlongs in 1:09 4/5, considered a world class time for 6 furlongs...and still won going away. Its still to me, the greatest single sports performance ever..
Tonalist? Really? I had a bunch of other horses on my betting sheet but not him. Bummer. Fun race. I was disgusted before and after by the focus on California Chrome, a beautiful horse but there is a reason why horses don’t win the Triple Crown very often. It’s difficult. I never thought CC’s chances were as good as the foaming media muzzles did.
Secretariat - will always be the greatest and best race horse ever.
Didn’t know it until today but Chrome has bloodline tying him to Seattle slew
and also secretariat.
Great Great, and Great , Great Grandfathers.
From Bleacher Report
California Chrome is related to two of horse racing’s 11 Triple Crown winners on his father’s side. His great-great-grandfather on his father’s side was 1977 winner Seattle Slew, and his great-great-great grandfather was the horse widely considered the greatest of all-time, 1973 champion Secretariat.
Of course I’ve seen it. Started riding horses at 6, shown/competed them; my spine will verify that account whole heartedly.
Do you really know?
Because these have been the basic rules all along, never mind that the Triple Crown has never been solidified as such until the ‘70s, making comparisons even between Sec and Citation and War Admiral a bit tenuous. It can be argued that the ‘70s TCs were pansy compared to the earlier. But one thing that did not change was the openess of the races. Each horse had to face horses that didn’t race at all in the “series”.
DIRT record.
The absolute record had already been set by Kelso and Fiddle Isle, respectively. Fiddle Isle had the WR at 2:23.
Monarchos also beat the sub-2:00 Derby in 2001.
My family spent many years and many dollars rehabbing racehorses for the show ring. I've seen crushed navicular bones, broken sesamoids, splints, nerved legs, and other horrors horses have endured and kept going. Thoroughbreds will keep going until they literally break apart. It's the responsibility of the owners and trainers to know when they've reached the limit. And oftentimes, owners and trainers will be at odds.
In my opinion, the way they have the TC set up is detrimental. People will push the winner through the races because they would be risking too much money, time and fame not to. The TC should be run in May, June and July. That would take the whole spoiler element out of it and put all the horses on equal footing with regards to recovery.
And Sir Barton won the first triple crown in 1919.
A lot of people complained about Churchill Downs, though.
I read an interview earlier this week and they said Chrome had been packing on the pounds. I don't think that's a good thing going into a longer race like the Belmont. I don't care if it is all muscle. I thought it was a bad omen, because the owners of Smarty Jones said the same thing ten years ago before the Belmont.
Times change many things
Sham and Alydar would have won this years TC, crushing the
field.
That’s interesting.
It's three big races in three different states in five weeks. It's hard on everybody including the horse. That's why all three are so hard to win.
I wasn’t talking racing per sé, just the horse culture in general. Damn near 20 years growing up in it. Breeders, owners and trainers, not to mention officials/rules bodies... Can be some of the sorriest SOB’s you’ll ever want to meet.
Especially when money is involved.
And money is ALWAYS involved in equestrian events. They don’t call it the sport of kings for nothing. And kings always wnt to win, no matter what.
If somebody goes to Churchill Downs and doesn’t expect the highest form of snobbism...they live is some kind of dream world.
Not saying I agree...but it is what it is.
Not taking away from Secretariat..but he only had 4 other horses racing against him. Not enough to box him in.
I doubt we’ll ever see another like him.
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