O'Brien trio won't have it easy in Belmont Derby, Oaks

ELMONT, N.Y. – Aidan O’Brien is sending a trio of horses from Ireland to compete in Saturday’s two seven-figure, Grade 1 turf stakes for 3-year-olds at Belmont Park, but he doesn’t appear to be holding as strong a hand as in past years.

For the $1.2 million Belmont Derby, O’Brien is sending Whitecliffsofdover and Homesman, neither of whom was on the original invitee list published by the New York Racing Association.

Whitecliffsofdover, a son of War Front who sold for $1.15 million as a yearling in 2015 at Keeneland, is only 2 for 7 in his career. At 2, he finished third in the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere at Chantilly, a one-mile race. Most recently, he finished 15th of 20 in the Group 3 Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot on June 21.

Homesman, also a Kentucky-bred son of War Front, is 2 for 5 in his career, with a head victory in a Group 3 stakes at The Curragh in May. Most recently, he finished fifth in the King George V Stakes on June 22 at Royal Ascot.

O’Brien won last year’s Belmont Derby with Deauville and also sent out the third-place finisher in Long Island Sound. In 2014, O’Brien finished second in the Belmont Derby with Adelaide.

O’Brien is winless with four runners in three runnings of the Belmont Oaks. This year, he will send out Key To My Heart, who was not on the original list of Oaks invitees. Key To My Heart is 2 for 10 and is coming off a 2 3/4-length victory in the listed Irish Oaks Trial Stakes on June 28. This will be Key To My Heart’s third race in three weeks, as she finished seventh in the Group 3 Munster Oaks on June 18.

Entries for the Belmont Derby and Oaks were to be taken Tuesday. As of Monday, the 11 horses expected for the Derby were Arklow, Big Score, Called to the Bar, Good Samaritan, Homesman, Makarios, Oscar Performance, Senior Investment, Ticonderoga, Whitecliffsofdover, and Yoshida. Frostmourne was questionable for the race as he is also being considered for the Kent Stakes at Delaware Park on July 15.

The 11 horses expected for the Oaks were Beau Recall, Coasted, Daddys Lil Darling, Dynatail, Grizzel, Journey Home, Key To My Heart, New Money Honey, Sistercharlie, Uni, and Violet Blue.