Belmont Stakes Strike: Labor Dispute Reportedly Threatens Triple Crown Finale

The potential field of competitors and distance of the "Test of Champions" are not expected to derail I'll Have Another's Triple Crown bid, but a worker's strike would certainly get the job done.

According to a report from Jerry Bossert, Kenneth Lovett and Tracy Connor of the New York Daily News, a labor dispute is threatening this weekend's Belmont Stakes and the three-year-old colt's run for immortality:

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The union representing the maintenance crew and starters at the famed track could go on strike Friday ... “They’ve taken a strike vote two weeks ago and have authorization to go on strike,” Local 3 business manager Chris Erikson said. "I'm not saying they will. It’s up to NYRA, but the membership is authorized to strike."

Assembly Racing and Wagering Committee Chairman Gary Pretlow (D-Westchester) wasn't aware of the threatened strike but equated it to “blackmail.”

“They know this could be the biggest day in NYRA history,” Pretlow said.

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Most don't expect a strike to take place, as the Belmont expects well over 100,000 spectators at the park on race day and millions more watching on television, but the looming threat is the last thing they want to deal with.

The NYRA was recently taken over by Governor Cuomo after the Association failed to perform up the expected standards. As the News put it, Cuomo seized control "after a string of embarrassments" and with a Triple Crown bid coming to the park that type of performance was simply unacceptable.

Should the unthinkable happen, and the union strike the day before the race, all hell will break loose and I'll Have Another's campaign for a Triple Crown will be thrown into complete disarray.

It isn't even worth considering the catastrophic ramifications of pushing the race back, or off entirely, after the run the chestnut horse has made this season.

I'll Have Another's run has been something of a dream, and horse racing, once considered the "sport of kings" has benefited immensely as it looks to regain some of its popularity of old.

Words cannot even express how awful it would be for a strike to hit the 2012 Belmont Stakes.