Stars won’t be out for Crown finale

NEWYORK— This year’s topsyturvy Triple Crown trail comes to an end in a Belmont Stakes without the Kentucky Derby and Preakness winners or the expected favorite who dropped out. It does come with questions about a Japanese horse with a sore foot.

No horse has dominated the 3- year- old ranks so far, leaving the 1 ½ - mile race up for grabs among the 12 horses that will race Saturday. No rain is forecast, and temperatures are supposed to be in the high 70s for the scheduled 5: 37 p. m. post.

The 7- 2 early favorite IrishWar Cry is only in the Belmont after trainer Graham Motion licked his wounds from the colt’s 10th- place finish in the Kentucky Derby five weeks ago.

“When you get beaten as one of the favorites in the Derby, it’s pretty discouraging and you just want to put it behind you,” he said. “My horse is doing well. As long as he’s doing well, he deserved a chance.”

Irish War Cry inherited the role of favorite after Classic Empire was forced out earlier in the week with an abscess in his hoof.

Speculation on the status of early 4- 1 second choice Epicharis continued to swirl Friday after the colt didn’t train for a third straight day because of his sore right front hoof. Epicharis received a treatment of the legal anti- inflammatory Phenylbutazone, or bute, on Wednesday for what was described as lameness in his right front leg. The colt stood in ice to help his hoof and was fitted with a glue- on shoe, an alternative for horses with a damaged hoof. Instead of being nailed on, which could cause more soreness, the plastic- coated shoe is wrapped around the hoof wall.

Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming finished eighth in the Preakness, so he is skipping the Belmont.

Cloud Computing skipped the Derby, won the Preakness and is sitting out the Belmont.