Belmont Stakes 2012: Union Rags' Victory Tainted by Absence of I'll Have Another

Union Rags is the 2012 Belmont Stakes champion, and nobody can ever take that away from him.

His name is forever etched into racing lore, and he will no longer be known as "Union Rags," but rather "Union Rags, winner of the 2012 Belmont." He is truly an excellent horse and he ran a perfect race at the legendary third jewel of the Triple Crown, blazing past Paynter on the home stretch.

It was a brilliant victory, and everyone involved with the horse should be proud.

That said, his win will always have an asterisk attached to it, as I'll Have Another was shockingly scratched just one day before the fight (h/t USA Today).

After the late-surging horse won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes in thrilling fashion, casual fans were drawn to the sport for the first time in years. There hasn't been a Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978, and with I'll Have Another's elite stamina and penchant for home-stretch dominance, it looked as though we would all finally have another.

Instead, trainer Doug O'Neill announced that the horse had tendinitis in his left front leg, and he would never race again.

It was a sad development, and it sucked some of the life away from what should have been a historic day.

Yes, we still got a competitive and entertaining race. And yes, Union Rags can't be faulted for winning with the favorite sidelined.

Still, one can't help but wonder what would have happened if I'll Have Another was right there with Union Rags and Paynter, exploding down the home stretch yet again. It would have been an incredible spectacle, perhaps the best moment in the last 34 years of horse racing.

Unfortunately, we will never know what could have been.

All we know is that Union Rags won, and as deserved as it was, his signature victory will always feel hollow.