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Triple Crown is in sight Everything points to a Funny Cide win in BelmontPosted: Friday June 06, 2003 6:42 PM
Late Thursday afternoon I was standing with Jack Knowlton, managing partner of the Regular Joe syndicate that owns Funny Cide, on the apron of the track at Belmont Park. On this track Funny Cide will try Saturday to become the 12th Triple Crown winner in thoroughbred racing history, in the process avoiding becoming the ninth horse to fail in the 1 1/2-mile Belmont Stakes after winning the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. I handed Knowlton a copy of the Daily Racing Form, the bible of the sport. He began leafing through pages, and slowly other members of the ownership group slipped in around us, peering over Knowlton's shoulder. On page 3, above the column photo of respected DRF publisher Steven Crist, was the headline EXPECT TO SEE THE REAL EMPIRE MAKER. Three pages later, above a picture of the estimable columnist/speed figures inventor Andrew Beyer, were the words DYNEVER MAY END UP BEST OF GENERATION. The Sackatoga Stable crew began crowing about the picks. "We'll see in the race," said Knowlton. Several storylines are at work in the Belmont. The most public and accessible is the fact that Funny Cide, a gelding owned by non-sheiks and non-millionaires, can win the Triple Crown, ending the quarter-century drought since Affirmed outdueled Alydar in the Belmont. Such a performance would be terrific for racing and would draw even more attention to a horse who has already begun to cross over into mainstream pop culture. Racing, a struggling sport in many ways, could use a Funny Cide victory. On a more pragmatic level, the race comes down to a few basic questions. Here they are, with my answers: Do you believe in Empire Maker? I think Empire Maker is a very good horse whom most media members overhyped before the Kentucky Derby. Lord knows, I made the pilgrimage to Juddmonte Farms' sprawling estate in preparation for the Derby. I think the horse's bruised foot hurt his training for the Derby, but I don't think he would have beaten Funny Cide. I think Empire Maker was trying when he beat Funny Cide by half a length in the Wood Memorial, even though Jerry Bailey wasn't hitting him. I'm not sold that he's a superhorse. What about Dynever and Ten Most Wanted? Ten Most Wanted was the Derby buzz horse and ran poorly. Work by a horse chiropractor supposedly has corrected his back problem; I'm skeptical. Dynever looked brilliant in winning the Lone Star Derby after being trapped early, but this is a huge step up at a very long distance. Horses have stepped up and won this race before, but I'm not certain Dynever has it in him. Did Funny Cide work too fast on Tuesday? Sure, trainer Barclay Tagg said as much. But there's another way to look at it: This is the strongest, fittest 3-year-old in America right now. He's just dying to run fast and far. On the day after that hard work, Tagg kept him in the barn, walking the shedrow in the rain; one of his owners told me that Funny Cide kept trying to run out to the track. Plenty of evidence suggests that he's a monster right now. How will the race go? Most smart people think trainer D. Wayne Lukas wants Scrimshaw on the lead. Let's go with that. Funny Cide will sit second and Empire Maker third. If Lukas is hoping for a 1/2 mile in 50 seconds, forget it. Funny Cide and jockey Jose Santos won't let it happen. Funny Cide will mechanically assume the lead entering the far turn, and when Empire Maker makes his run in the stretch, he'll fall short. He might fall way short. We might see Funny Cide just draw off and win by a huge margin. And that would be best of all for racing. The birth of a true star. Sports Illustrated senior writer Tim Layden covers horse racing for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com. Click here to send him a question or comment. |
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