Belmont 2015: Latest News on American Pharoah and More Horses in the Lineup
As American Pharoah preps for the final leg of the Triple Crown and others do the same with the intention of playing spoiler, news continues to trickle out about the 2015 Belmont Stakes.
While the field and post positions won't cement until Wednesday's draw, every horse, trainer and jockey has been hard at work in New York prepping for horse racing's version of a marathon, the brutal final leg where all hope for inside positions for the shorter dash.
With all of these things in motion, it can be tough to keep track of every bit of info coming from the Big Apple.
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Let's slow things down for a moment and take a look at the projected lineup and some of the biggest items to know.
Belmont Stakes Projected Lineup
| American Pharoah | 4-5 |
| Frosted | 5-1 |
| Materiality | 13-2 |
| Madefromlucky | 12-1 |
| Mubtaahij | 16-1 |
| Keen Ice | 25-1 |
| Tale of Verve | 20-1 |
| Frammento | 33-1 |
Odds courtesy of Odds Shark as of June 2.
Latest News Out of New York
Keen Ice Looks Like a Legitimate Spoiler
When folks think of potential spoilers to American Pharoah's Triple Crown bid in New York, Keen Ice isn't the first name coming to mind.
Which is fair, at least in a way. Trained by Dale L. Romans, who doesn't have the star power of, say, Bob Baffert, the colt finished out of the spotlight at Churchill Downs with a seventh-place finish and has since been missing in action after skipping the Preakness.
It sounds like it's time to pay close attention, though. Per Steve Haskin of BloodHorse.com, Keen Ice looks great in practice so far:
It's a narrative continuing to gain steam, with reports as recent as Tuesday posting some wow-worthy times for the colt, per Churchill Downs:
One of a few horses in the Belmont field with elite closing speed, all it takes is for Keen Ice to stick in the running on his fresh legs to pull off an upset.
Ask Romans, and it sounds like even he can't help but buy into the blossoming hype, as Churchill Downs staff writer Ryan Martin captures:
All Keen Ice seems to need now? A favorable post position, which he might just get Wednesday.
Transition for Mubtaahij Going As Planned
Mubtaahij didn't blow anyone away at the Kentucky Derby, finishing a solid eighth in what amounted to his first American start.
The second might be quite a bit more impressive.
This time around, Mubtaahij features a new jockey, and as David Grening of Daily Racing Form records, it hasn't taken the two long on the practice field to capture the attention of observers:
As for trainer Michael de Kock, he sounds confident in the new form of his horse ahead of his second American start, as BloodHorse.com editorial director Eric Mitchell captures:
Of course, many pegged Mubtaahij as a horse to watch well before the jockey switch. He's well-rested after skipping the Preakness, and international horses tend to fare much better at longer distances, making the Belmont somewhat feel like home for Mubtaahij.
As the reports continue to trickle in, it's clear more should pay attention to Mubtaahij.
American Pharoah Makes It Look Easy
Shocker alert—American Pharoah looks nothing short of spectacular.
After storming to a victory late at Churchill Downs, Baffert's top horse put on perhaps the best race of his career at the Preakness, refusing to be pinned against the rail in the No. 1 post and going wire-to-wire for an easy-looking victory.
So far, it looks like American Pharoah is anything but a horse running his third race in a little more than a month. Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde offers one report of the colt's impressive practices:
Not impressed?
Perhaps it's time to be, as Forde breaks down the resume of one of those most impressed by American Pharoah's early practice runs:
"Understand, Howard has been around the racetrack for 46 years and operated his own stable since 1979. He won the Preakness Stakes with Summer Squall in 1990 and had the American Horse of the Year in 2003 with Mineshaft.
If Neil Howard is impressed by what a horse is doing in the morning, you should be, too.
"
As for American Pharoah's resume, well, it speaks for itself at this point.
As Forde explains, the horse both fortunate and skilled enough to triumph in the first two legs of the Triple Crown deserves every bit of hype coming his way.
With American Pharoah, it helps that he's coming off his best performance to date, has a jockey gunning for his third attempt at a Triple Crown and continues to back up the hype on the track, where it matters most.
Stats and information via Preakness.com unless otherwise specified.
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