Belmont Stakes 2012: I'll Have Another and Horses That Will Dominate Competition

When it comes to the 2012 Belmont Stakes, the field is I'll Have Another, Union Rags, Dullahan and then everybody else. 

Paynter and Street Life both have legitimate chances at pulling off an upset and destroying Doug O'Neill's Triple Crown hopes, but I just don't see them cracking the top three.

That's reserved for the big boys.

Let's take a closer look at what horses will establish themselves as the "big boys" on June 9 in New York. 

I'll Have Another

This talented horse has already beaten Union Rags and Dullahan and is the clear favorite as he goes for the first Triple Crown victory in 34 years.

What's more, he's proven he can win in any situation. 

In a crowded Kentucky Derby field, he managed to avoid a bad start that so many other horses fell victim to, kept up with a ridiculous early pace and made his comeback in the final 100 yards.

At Pimlico, he beat a sprinter, Bodemeister, on a sprinter's track.

Now the longest track of the three races at Belmont, I'll Have Another—a closer in every definition of the word—will thrive. 

It's going to take the very, very best from one of these other two horses to beat him. 

Union Rags

Union Rags was doomed at the Derby after the first 20 yards.

But people fail to realize how good of a race he ran after getting out of the traffic jam to come back and finish seventh. 

As long as this horse gets a good starting position at Belmont, he has the speed and finishing skills to give I'll Have Another a run for his money.

Dullahan

Speaking of finishing speed, we have Dullahan.

At Churchill, Dullahan was the horse making the equally impressive dash in the final 100 yards to finish third. If that course had been a little longer, he would have passed I'll Have Another.

Well, Belmont is a little longer, so he'll get that chance.

Assuming these three horses run like they are capable of, there is no way any other colt will knock them out of the top three.

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