Horse racing takes center stage
Horse racing may not receive the attention that football, baseball and basketball are accustomed to, but Saturday蘑菇视频 Belmont Stakes brought the 鈥淪port of Kings鈥� to the mainstream.
Jockey Victor Espinoza guided American Pharoah out of the fifth gate and into the history books with a victory in the Belmont, as the first Triple Crown winner since 1978. American Pharoah led the entire race and pulled away down the home stretch to give trainer Bob Baffert the historic victory.
Since Affirmed accomplished the feat 37 years ago, 13 horses had won the first two legs of the Triple Crown, The Kentucky Derby and The Preakness, before coming up short in the Belmont Stakes.
The Belmont is the last and most difficult leg of the three races, with the distance covering a mile and a half.
American Pharoah was up to the challenge, Saturday, and the 90,000 fans in attendance and the millions watching on TV witnessed history in a sport that is normally not showcased on the big stage.
I find horse racing to be intriguing. Maybe it has to do with the betting, even though I only went to the races one time at the Meadows. I also enjoy the spectacle of the three big ones that run two Saturdays in May and one in June.
I wanted to make a bet and went to several sites (they were legitimate) looking to put a wager on the favorite. However, both sites would not allow me to bet, or maybe I just didn鈥檛 know what I was doing.
I decided to forgo making a wager and just enjoy being able to see history made.
The past 37 years have been heartbreaking for fans of thoroughbred racing, with a baker蘑菇视频 dozen of misses.
California Chrome won the first two legs just last year before being stepped on by the No. 3 horse coming out of the gate in the Belmont en route to coming up short. War Eblam (2002), Funny Cide (2003), Smarty Jones (2004), Big Brown (2008) and I鈥檒l Have Another (2012) each came up short in the new century, which led skeptics to wonder if another horse could do it. I鈥檒l Have Another did not race in the Belmont.
The end of the 20th century featured some tough finishes for horses attempting to make history when Real Quiet lost in a photo finish to Victory Gallop in 1998 and Charismatic was third in 鈥�99 after suffering a broken leg coming down the stretch.
Smarty Jones was one of my personal favorites. I enjoyed his run and really thought he had a chance to break the streak, but he came up one-length short to Birdstone in the Belmont.
Baffert is a Hall-of-Fame trainer who had come up short three times in an attempt to win the Triple Crown. Baffert lost in 鈥�97 with Silver Charm, was the trainer for Real Quiet in 鈥�98 and guided War Eblam in 鈥�02.
Baffert started riding during his youth and got into quarter horses before trying his hand with the big boys. He was the subject of criticism, as skeptics were not in favor of his attitude. They believed he had a confidence that was borderline cocky. He also suffered a heart attack and lost both of his parents, whom he mentioned in an emotional post-race interview with NBC.
Baffert and the struggle to get to the top of the mountain is what makes horse racing intriguing. Fans cheer as the thoroughbred gallops down the home stretch and are distraught when the dreams are shattered following a difficult loss. It is what the public can identify with. When the horse loses, we lose.
Regardless of what happens in 2016, this year蘑菇视频 trio of races will be one to remember as the streak is finally broken.
On a side note, the horse with the coolest name ever, in my opinion, is Fusiachi Pegasus. I just love the way it sounds. He won the 2000 Kentucky Derby before losing in the Preakness. He did not race in the Belmont and is considered a disappointment as a stallion. But the name says it all.
蘑菇视频 sports writer Jonathan Guth can be reached via email at jguth@heraldstandard.com.