Video: NYRA (with - Tom Durkin’s call) of the 144th Belmont Stakes
7th place was Dullahan (No. 5); somewhat of a wise-guy wager was 19-1 long shot 3rd place finisher Atigun with Julien up.
In case anyone did not catch this video series pre-Derby: (video) Union Rags - An American Love Story
GLIMMERGASS…Thank you for that link…I will probably watch it a second time…soooo good
Loved how Phyllis Wyeth said she only owns this, and half of another horse - and he’s a claimer!
[QUOTE=Glimmerglass;6368368]
In case anyone did not catch this video series pre-Derby: (video) Union Rags - An American Love Story[/QUOTE]
Thanks! That was amazing. I bet on him at our little Belmont party. I would have bet more if I had seen that first. :lol:
So how many horses with the word “rags” in their name have LOST the Belmont? We’ve now got two winners this century.
[QUOTE=Mali;6368101]
Happy Birthday! Don’t forget to bet on Johhny V on your 40th![/QUOTE]
Thank you!!!
Will do on my 40th. Hoping for a TC winner!!
Unfortunately the computer ate my post but effectively Union Rags was back home by 1am Sunday morning and will get time off. He’ll likely resurface at either the Haskell, Jim Dandy and/or The Travers.
Dullahan is going to most likely revert back to turf.
85,811 folks were there at Belmont Park which is great considering no TC was on the line and lot of the drama was significantly deflated.
Guyana Star Dweej eased after the 1-mile marker and DNF is said to be ok today. His trainer - who should be admonished for entering him - said the horse could’ve finished. Really? I think the band Cake sang it best:
[i]The fans get up, and get out of town.
The arena is empty except for one man,
Still driving and striving as fast as he can
The sun has gone down and the moon has come up,
And long ago somebody left with the cup,
He’s going the distance.
He’s going for speed.[/i]
The headline for the sports section with the Wall Street Journal today: ‘The Worst Sports Weekend in History’ … with the Belmont being gutted with IHA’s defection/retirement on top of Bradly “defeating” Pacquiao and the French Open suspended …
I think Union Rags’ connections are the best story racing has seen for a long time. I wish more were being made of the Wyeths. What an amazing story of an incredible couple-- with incredible PICTURES galore. And then there are Matz and JV. Can we even spell "c-l-a-s-s!!! I’m happier about their story than I could ever have been over an IHA triple crown!
[QUOTE=fish;6370591]
I think Union Rags’ connections are the best story racing has seen for a long time. I wish more were being made of the Wyeths. What an amazing story of an incredible couple-- with incredible PICTURES galore. And then there are Matz and JV. Can we even spell "c-l-a-s-s!!! I’m happier about their story than I could ever have been over an IHA triple crown![/QUOTE]
Few would disagree that their victory tastes sweet and the Belmont win did makeup for the deflated circumstances with IHA. Many well informed folks said UR didn’t have a shot. Simon Bray, for example at TVG and an assistant trainer to Bill Mott, said he knew UR’s dam well and there was no way he’d get 12 furlongs.
There are a lot of in-print articles covering the horse and connections today although from the television perspective the sports calender has moved on. So not until Saratoga will NBC, for example, resume tv coverage.
In the lead up to the Kentucky Derby (and even the Florida Derby) there was no absence of segments with Phyllis and Jamie Wyeth along with Matz and Union Rags. So it wasn’t an overlooked story at all.
In all fairness there was some bristling in the press with the thinly covered, less than flattering words for Julien Leparoux by team Union Rags for having not won either (if not both) Derbies and dropping him accordingly.
Racing is a business so nobody should begrudge a decision to change jocks. However do it clean, quick and leave it that. For the record Julien rode a 20-1 horse - Atigun - to near victory in the Belmont and I suspect Trakus would show he went further in distance than Union Rags did yet lost by 1-length. I think the continual remarks of UR on account of the jockey losing the KD and FD were foolish.
Add to that when Doug O’Neill failed to take one bad step with his actions or comments - despite the slings and arrows shot his way - he was widely praised by his peers. There is/was no need to speculate why IHA may have been injured. Yet Matz did go there, unlike anyone else, after being asked what he thought about the news. I’d think there is an unwritten rule that you don’t speculate about training on national tv of others.
Off my soapbox … all that said I’m happy to balance everything together and still give the UR team their earned kudos.
Unless I’m mistaken, this year’s Triple Crown earns Zayat Stables the odd distinctions of being
[LIST=1]
[QUOTE=Glimmerglass;6370792]
Few would disagree that their victory tastes sweet and the Belmont win did makeup for the deflated circumstances with IHA. Many well informed folks said UR didn’t have a shot. Simon Bray, for example at TVG and an assistant trainer to Bill Mott, said he knew UR’s dam well and there was no way he’d get 12 furlongs.
There are a lot of in-print articles covering the horse and connections today although from the television perspective the sports calender has moved on. So not until Saratoga will NBC, for example, resume tv coverage.
In the lead up to the Kentucky Derby (and even the Florida Derby) there was no absence of segments with Phyllis and Jamie Wyeth along with Matz and Union Rags. So it wasn’t an overlooked story at all.
In all fairness there was some bristling in the press with the thinly covered, less than flattering words for Julien Leparoux by team Union Rags for having not won either (if not both) Derbies and dropping him accordingly.
Racing is a business so nobody should begrudge a decision to change jocks. However do it clean, quick and leave it that. For the record Julien rode a 20-1 horse - Atigun - to near victory in the Belmont and I suspect Trakus would show he went further in distance than Union Rags did yet lost by 1-length. I think the continual remarks of UR on account of the jockey losing the KD and FD were foolish.
Add to that when Doug O’Neill failed to take one bad step with his actions or comments - despite the slings and arrows shot his way - he was widely praised by his peers. There is/was no need to speculate why IHA may have been injured. Yet Matz did go there, unlike anyone else, after being asked what he thought about the news. I’d think there is an unwritten rule that you don’t speculate about training on national tv of others.
Off my soapbox … all that said I’m happy to balance everything together and still give the UR team their earned kudos.[/QUOTE]
What can I say? I’m an art major, long time fan of the Wyeth art family. Also talked horses with Michael Matz decades ago at Timonium, and, like so many, was totally entranced by his unassuming character despite such achievements and fame in the horseworld. Also, like Phyllis, I was I (and remain) a Kennedy democrat/environmentalist/activist for the disabled-- despite being raised by solid pocketbook Republicans. To top it all off, I’m presently appealing an irs audit declaring my horse business a hobby-- the same threat that compelled Phyllis to sell Union Rags.
A lot of personal buttons pushed here. In addition, my daughter’s a novelist. I like this story. IHA’s doesn’t compare.
[QUOTE=fish;6370891]
A lot of personal buttons pushed here. In addition, my daughter’s a novelist. I like this story. IHA’s doesn’t compare.[/QUOTE]
You’ll hear no objection from me on anyone liking whomever they want. I merely pointed out why some folks before the Belmont thought collectively UR was plagued with some sour grapes. Hopefully Union Rags will find victory at Saratoga again this summer. It would be nice to see folks more often than not in the winners circle who can appreciate the victory more than the check behind it.
Beyer Speed Figure for Union Rags: 96
Other speed figs for winners on Belmont Stakes day: Trinniberg, 106; Caixa Eletronica, 103; Tapitsfly, 100; Desert Blanc, 98
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Unless I’m mistaken, this year’s Triple Crown earns Zayat Stables the odd distinctions of being
[LIST=1]
Yep. It’s also worth noting that neither horse raced as 2-year-olds and swept the bottom of the Triple Crown exacta. Bodemeister and Paynter together losing the three victories by a combined two lengths.
Bob Baffert for having trained both certainly deserves some credit where credit is due. If each can keep their form (if not even enhance it with maturity) and they return to the East Coast I’d think they could snag the Haskell and Travers if they wanted to.
The New York Racing Association, Belmont’s operator, reported attendance of 85,811, a 53.8 percent gain over the crowd last year and the largest crowd to attend the race when a Triple Crown was not on the line.
(The all-time attendance record for the Belmont was set in 2004, when 120,139 people showed up to see if Smarty Jones could win the Triple Crown.)
All-sources handle on the 13-race card was $96.6 million, according to NYRA, an 18.8 percent gain over the 13-race Belmont Stakes card last year. This year, 126 horses ran in the 13 races, compared with 125 horses last year.
According to the chart of the race, handle on the Belmont Stakes itself was $56.1 million, a gain of 13.1 percent over the amount bet last year, when handle was $49.6 million.
The overnight rating for the last 45 minutes of the Belmont Stakes broadcast on NBC was a 5.4, up 13 percent over the rating last year, according to the network. Share was a 13, up 18.2 percent compared with the share for last year, the network said.
According to NBC, the 5.4 overnight rating was the highest for a non-Triple Crown Belmont broadcast since 2005. Ratings are generally far higher for the Belmont when a Triple Crown is on the line. In 2008, when Big Brown was attempting to win the Triple Crown, the rating was a 9.5, with a 21 share.
As a final point to the Kentucky Derby …
Doug O’Neill made $20k from a $100 future wager in Vegas on I’ll Have Another (at the time the wager was made the future odds were 200-1):
O’Neill and Verge said Navarro made the $100 wager for them. Lucky’s director of marketing, Dan Shapiro, who was also here to witness the ticket being cashed, said that was a limit wager and the only one made at that price, and the odds were dropped to 100-1. O’Neill and Verge said Navarro bet $50 for himself at 100-1 and made six bets in all. By the time he left, Lucky’s had lowered I’ll Have Another’s odds to 25-1, but that wasn’t enough to keep the book from having its first losing Derby futures in the company’s four years of existence, Shapiro said.
On Monday, O’Neill had to fill out a Currency Transaction Report, required for all casino transactions that exceed $10,000, and then was paid the $20,000 profit $100 at a time in four stacks of $5,000 each (plus his $100 bet back). O’Neill and Verge said they were going to spread the winnings around the stable since the colt’s success was a team effort.
Regardless, you know that bettor’s lament when he makes a big score and says, “Now I’m finally even”? or that he needs another one to get ahead? Well, O’Neill was definitely in horseplayer mode.
“I’ve been betting the Derby futures since I can remember, even before I should have been betting them,” said the 44-year-old. “I’ve never been able to cash until now. I’m sure I’ve lost more than this will cash. I usually bet two to three a year, it’s fun to follow their progress.”
O’Neill said he hasn’t bet his own horses in the futures since 2006 when he had the reigning 2-year-old champ, Stevie Wonderboy, and then in 2007 when he had Notional, Great Hunter, and Liquidity with only Great Hunter and Liquidity making the Derby starting gate.
Once again, or at least seems as a common theme in this century, the horse that wins the Belmont Stakes goes nowhere but down after. Generally it has been a lackluster career and this time its retirement:
Union Rags retired from racing July 20, 2012
While preparing the colt for the July 29 Haskell Invitational, trainer Michael Matz noticed a leg issue. It was quickly determined there was a ligament problem that would require months of rest. So, Union Rags was declared out for the balance of the 2012 season. Now, the big colt is gone forever, his owner searching for a stallion deal with one of the major Kentucky farms.
“No decision has been reached on that,” Wyeth’s advisor Russell Jones said. “This is the right time of the year to be talking to these guys so she wants to have the word out there that we’re moving ahead, that the decision has been made.”
Matz was really hoping the colt would come back and run in 2013. Not going to happen. Union Rags may have been able to make it back in top form, but there was no guarantee.
[QUOTE=Glimmerglass;6448694]
Once again, or at least seems as a common theme in this century, the horse that wins the Belmont Stakes goes nowhere but down after. Generally it has been a lackluster career and this time its retirement:
Because of…? Is the consensus that it’s a hard campaign and tough on 2-3 year olds?
Per a tweet this afternoon 8-21-12:
#KyDerby and #Preakness runner-up Bodemeister has been retired with a left shoulder injury, according to a news release.
The Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner never raced again (I’ll Have Another"); the runner up (“Bodemeister”) never raced again. And the Belmont Stakes winner (“Union Rags”) never raced again.
