ELMONT, N.Y. -- The Belmont Stakes won't have the Kentucky Derby winner or the Preakness winner, but it won't have a shortage of entries, with a bulky field of 12 or 13 set to contest the last and longest leg of the Triple Crown on Saturday here at Belmont Park.
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Jun 06, 2017 Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby champ Gormley, who finished ninth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, was officially added to the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes field after trainer John Shirreffs and co-owner Jerry Moss. Posted on June 6, 2017. She was joined on the journey by Jerry and Ann Moss' Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby winner Gormley, trained by John Shirreffs, on assignment for the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes presented. Jun 08, 2017 Royal Mo will never race again, leaving the colors of Ann and Jerry Moss to be carried in the Belmont by Gormley, a son of Malibu Moon who finished ninth in the Derby after breaking from post 18.
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A final decision on Gormley, the Santa Anita Derby winner who was ninth in the Kentucky Derby, hadn't been announced by 2 p.m. Eastern Monday, but should he run, this year's field size would be equal to the 13 who contested the Belmont a year ago. Barring a rash of unexpected defections or scratches, this will mark the eighth time in the last nine runnings that the Belmont field has 10 starters or more, the exception being 2015, when just seven horses tried, and failed, to stop American Pharoah from sweeping the Triple Crown.
Gormley's trainer, John Shirreffs, and owner, Jerry Moss, were consulting with B. Wayne Hughes of Spendthrift Farm on Monday regarding whether to run Gormley. Spendthrift holds the breeding rights to Gormley, and it is where Gormley will go to stud at the conclusion of his racing career. Gormley is by Malibu Moon, who stands at Spendthrift and at age 20 is still quite active but obviously is closer to the end of his breeding career than the beginning. Gormley is his best current runner, and Malibu Moon's son Orb has been well received at stud.
Gormley was scheduled to fly to New York on Wednesday, which is when all the horses in the race must be on the grounds. Classic Empire, the likely favorite for the Belmont, was scheduled to travel on Tuesday. Classic Empire, last year's champion 2-year-old male, was second in the Preakness after finishing fourth in the Derby. He and Lookin At Lee are the only two horses who will compete in all three Triple Crown races this year.
Roulette table tactics. Always Dreaming, the Kentucky Derby winner who was eighth in the Preakness, and Preakness winner Cloud Computing are both bypassing the Belmont. The last time different horses won the Derby and Preakness and neither ran in the Belmont was 2010.
The Belmont field, including jockeys, is expected to be: Classic Empire (Julien Leparoux), Epicharis (Christophe Lemaire), Hollywood Handsome (Florent Geroux), Irish War Cry (Rajiv Maragh), J Boys Echo (Robby Albarado), Lookin At Lee (Irad Ortiz Jr.), Meantime (Mike Smith), Multiplier (Joel Rosario), Patch (John Velazquez), Senior Investment (Channing Hill), Tapwrit (Jose Ortiz), and Twisted Tom (Javier Castellano). Gormley would have Victor Espinoza aboard if he runs.
The draw for the 1 1/2-mile Belmont is scheduled for midday Wednesday at Rockefeller Center in New York City, during which the Met Mile and Manhattan, part of the outstanding Belmont undercard, also will be drawn. The remainder of the Saturday card was scheduled to be drawn on Tuesday.
It was a fairly uneventful morning on Monday at Belmont Park. Among the highlights were Epicharis, the Japanese invader, visiting the starting gate for a schooling session after galloping on the training track, and Senior Investment, third in the Preakness, jogging 1 1/2 miles and then galloping 1 1/2 miles on the main track in advance of an expected final workout on Tuesday.
On Sunday, Kentucky Derby runner-up Lookin At Lee worked a half-mile in 48.42 seconds over the Belmont main track, his only work between the Preakness, where he finished fourth, and the Belmont.
Working by himself under exercise rider Jesus Vinegas, Lookin At Lee got his last quarter in 23.90 seconds over a fast main track on a gorgeous morning on Long Island.
'That's a very good breeze for him,' said trainer Steve Asmussen, who was in Texas for his eldest son Keith's high school graduation. 'With him having just the one breeze, we feel good about him.'
Toby Sheets, Asmussen's longtime New York assistant, oversaw the move. Lookin At Lee arrived in New York the day after the Preakness, and Sheets said, 'He loves it here.'
-- additional reporting by David Grening
After discussions earlier in the week, Malibu Moon's Grade 1-winning colt Gormley was entered in Saturday's $1.5 million Belmont S. (G1), the final leg of the Triple Crown.
Gormley, owned by Jerome and Anne Moss, drew post 3 for Saturday's 1 1/2-mile contest and will be ridden by regular rider Victor Espinosa.
'He deserves the opportunity,' said Dottie Ingordo-Shirreffs, wife of trainer John Shirreffs and racing manager for the Mosses.
Gormley got a less-than-clean trip the Kentucky Derby, finishing mid-pack, leaving his connections hoping for more for the winner of the Santa Anita Derby (G1) and Sham S. Improve your bet. (G3) earlier in the year.
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Gormley has worked three times since the Derby, increasing in distance each time as he prepares for the longest of the Triple Crown races.
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'He was steady all the way, finished great, and galloped out nice,' Espinoza said of Gormley's seven-furlong work on June 3. 'It went the way I wanted it to. I didn't want him slowing down, so that was good.'
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The decision to run Saturday was made by his owner and trainer after consulting with Spendthrift Farm's owner B. Wayne Hughes. Spendthrift has the breeding rights to Gormley upon his retirement. Gormley is Malibu Moon's leading active runner of 2017 with $684,000 in earnings this year.
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Post time for the Belmont, which will be televised live on NBC-TV, is at 6:37 p.m. ET.
