Belmont Stakes:
Belmont favorite has ‘tremendous kick,’ trainer says
Preakness winner Exaggerator seeks to ‘settle and finish.’
In a Kentucky Derby with an expected lack of speed, Exaggerator still settled 17 lengths off the lead before making a run. Earlier in his career, the Preakness Stakes winner also showed he could set the early pace.
“Of course we don’t want that,” Keith Desormeaux said of the 11⁄ 2- mile Belmont Stakes. But in a third Triple Crown leg heavy on closers, the trainer won’t mind sitting more near the front than Exaggerator has gone in his two biggest victories, the other being the Santa Anita Derby.
“It doesn’t matter if we’re two off the lead or 20 off the lead as long as Exaggerator is comfortable,” Desormeaux added. “If he’s comfortable for the first half, three-quarters of the race, then it doesn’t matter if it’s a slow pace or not. He’s got a tremendous kick, and that tremendous kick can only be realized by his comfort level in the first part of the race.”
Trainer Todd Pletcher confirmed after a workout by Stradivari that the Preakness’ fourth-place finisher would join his Destin, sixth in the Derby, in Saturday’s Belmont. Either of those contenders could steal the Belmont with a front-running effort, as the 11⁄ 2- mile test plays to well-placed runners despite its distance.
Deep closers rarely win New York’s biggest race. Exaggerator could change that.
“After all these starts, he finally realizes exactly what we’re asking him to do,” Desormeaux said. “We’re not asking him to blow away from there from the gate and run as fast as he can. We want him to settle and finish, and that’s very hard to do.
“Horses have very volatile minds, and it’s our job as trainers to try to keep those in check.”
Louisville native Dale Romans, who will take a shot at the Belmont with Preakness runner-up Cherry Wine and Derby runner Brody’s Cause, has conditioned his colts by leaving them on the track longer each morning. That, Romans hopes, will teach the two to focus in the longest race of their careers.
As with Exaggerator — and Suddenbreakingnews, plus Creator and Lani — the Romans duo has made a habit of running from behind.
“You know, Woody Stevens used to say it was a speed horse race to go a mile-and-a-half,” Romans said of a trainer that won five Belmonts. “You need to be out there on the pace because they’re all tired at the end. So we may be laying a little bit closer.”