Great Hunter is in, Nobiz Like Shobiz is out, and Hard Spun is likely to run in the $1 million Belmont Stakes on June 9.
Meanwhile, Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense returned to the track Thursday for the first time since getting beat by a head in the Preakness. He galloped an easy mile at Churchill Downs under exercise rider Mark Cutler. His connections said they want to evaluate the colt for a few more days before making a final decision on whether to run in the Belmont.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. The two colts who staged a thrilling duel in the Preakness last Saturday at Pimlico are slowly getting back to their routines. Curlin and Street Sense got back to Churchill Downs on Sunday morning after early charter flights from Baltimore.
Curlin, the Preakness winner, was the first to return to training when he galloped a mile under regular exercise rider Carmen Rosas early Wednesday over a fast Churchill surface.
Everything looks great, said Scott Blasi, assistant to trainer Steve Asmussen.
Three times in the last four years, the winner of the Belmont Stakes ran in the Kentucky Derby then skipped the Preakness Stakes in order to come into the Belmont fresh. It worked with Jazil. It worked with Birdstone. It worked with Empire Maker. And trainer John Shirreffs is hoping the strategy works for Tiago, who was kept out of the Preakness following his late-running seventh-place finish in the Derby.
The first three finishers in the Kentucky Derby took the first three spots in the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, and there is the chance all three could show up in New York on June 9 for the Belmont Stakes, too.
Two of three - Curlin and Hard Spun - are definite for the Belmont, while Street Sense is now possible for the race, their respective trainers said. The Belmont, at 1 1/2 miles, is the longest and last leg of the Triple Crown.
ELMONT, N.Y. - The 2006 Triple Crown forever will be known for the ecstasy of watching Barbaro in the Kentucky Derby, and the agony of seeing Barbaro's career-ending injury in the Preakness Stakes. But performances by the two subsequent winners of Triple Crown races, and the anticipated returns of two highly regarded 3-year-olds this summer, bode well for the division the second half of the year, even if Barbaro will not be part of the mix.
ELMONT, N.Y. - As a jockey in Panama, Fernando Jara earned the nickname "Ice Boy" for the fearless way he rode.
"His heart is cold, and his mind is strong," said Jorge Jara, Fernando's father, and a trainer in Panama.
Jorge Jara, 54, was one of 61,168 in attendance Saturday at blustery Belmont Park, where Jara put up a fearless and flawless ride in guiding Jazil to victory in the 138th Belmont Stakes. At age 18, Jara joined Steve Cauthen as one of the youngest riders to win the Belmont.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Jazil emerged from his victory in Saturday's Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in good shape, and now will be pointed for the major 3-year-old race of the summer, the Travers Stakes at Saratoga, his trainer, Kiaran McLaughlin, said Sunday morning.
Bluegrass Cat and Sunriver, who finished second and third in the Belmont, also will aim for the Travers, according to trainer Todd Pletcher.
ELMONT, N.Y. - For Jazil, there no longer is any loneliness for the long-distance runner. He had closed strongly in the Wood Memorial, and in the Kentucky Derby, but could not get up in time. Going 1 1/2 miles in the 138th on Saturday at Belmont Park, however, Jazil overpowered his 11 rivals on the turn and drew away for a 1 1/4-length victory in the final leg of the Triple Crown.
The victory was the first in a Triple Crown race for both trainer Kiaran McLaughlin and jockey Fernando Jara, 18.
Brad Free
The Belmont is ready-made for Bob and John, whose pressing style should play well in a race expected to unfold at a soft pace. Bob and John produced his best efforts in California this winter in slow-tempo races similar to the likely scenario of this Belmont.
ELMONT, N.Y. - April showers may bring May flowers, certainly roses on the first Saturday of that month. But what's the deal with June? It has continued to rain here at Belmont Park, and that has left several trainers with runners in Saturday's casting a wary eye on The Weather Channel.
