BELMONT STAKES MISSING SEVERAL BIG NAMES

There is no Triple Crown to shoot for this year, the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winners are skipping the Belmont Stakes, and the presumptive favorite has been scratched. If that’s not enough to make Belmont organizers apoplectic, the 4-1 second choice, Japanese colt Epicharis, did not train Thursday and is being treated with an anti-inflammatory for lameness in his right front hoof. Even with problems piling up, the third and longest of horse racing ’s Triple Crown series remains an intriguing contest at 11⁄2 miles. Saturday’s race will field a competitive lineup of up to a dozen 3-yearolds vying for the $1.5 million purse, led by the new favorite, Irish War Cry, who sits at 7-2. Lookin at Lee, the only horse to run in all three Triple Crown races, is the third choice at 5-1.