Wonder if he got “paid” anything for that tactical mistake. That was the conversation at my house. Lots of money bet on CC. Follow the $, always.
There’s always lots of money bet on the horse that won the first two. But the vast majority of it is “souvenir betting” (people place the bet to have the slip and intend to keep the slip if the horse wins rather than cash it in). Remember it’s para-mutual betting the payouts are structured specifically to make sure no matter who wins the house wins. Smart money was never on Chrome, he showed no ability to make the distance, the field was catching up to him at both previous races, he’d never won at Belmont before. For the people who paid attention this was one of the least anticipated “almost” Crowns ever because they all knew he really didn’t have a chance.