Belmont Rivals for Big Brown
Casino Drive, Roman Emperor Possible; Denis of Cork, Tomcito In
Big Brown has created a realistic Triple Crown buzz. Casino Drive, Roman Emperor, Denis of Cork, and Tomcito take on possible spoiler roles for the 140th Belmont.
A Triple Crown championship buzz has invaded Thoroughbred racing in America. Can Big Brown, 5-0, win the 140th Belmont Stakes and a Triple Crown championship? No lineup is written in cement for the race, but Casino Drive, Roman Emperor, Denis of Cork, and Tomcito are possible early commitments to the Belmont.
Denis of Cork, with Calvin Borel up, finished third in the Kentucky Derby, then skipped the Preakness. Tomcito, a dual classic winner in Peru, ran a distant third to Big Brown in the Florida Derby, then went sixth behind Behindatthebar in the Apr.19 Coolmore Lexington Stakes.
Casino Drive put away the Peter Pan Stakes May 10 by a margin of 5-3/4 lengths, and Roman Emperor scored in the second annual Barbaro Stakes May 17 at Belmont Park, on the same day that Big Brown spurted unmenaced to a 5-3/4 lengths win in the Preakness Stakes.
Only the 1-1/2 miles of the Belmont Stakes stands between Big Brown and immortality. No horse has swept the three-race Triple Crown classics since Affirmed in 1978. The Belmont's grueling 12 furlongs causes the mightiest of challengers to gas out, or to misjudge mileage and strength.
Casino Drive would bring a 2-0 career record to the Belmont, having won his debut in Japan by 11-1/2 lengths, and getting the Peter Pan in a strong closing run. He overtook Spark Candle, a stablemate, and Mint Lane, who had set a very quick pace. He finished the 1-1/8 miles in 1:47.87 in just his second career race.
A Mineshaft colt, out of Better Than Honour, by Deputy Minister, Casino Drive is related to Belmont Stakes winners Rags to Riches and Jazil. And in an ironic twist, he was ridden by Big Brown jockey, Kent Desormeaux. "He's a phenomenal talent," Desormeaux said of Casino Drive. He admitted that he and Big Brown would be pushed every step of the way in the Belmont.
Roman Emperor, a bay son of Empire Maker, won the $100,000 Barbaro Stakes when he turned back the late challenge of Da' Tara. He would enter the Belmont Stakes off a three-win, eight-starts record. His sire won the Belmont in 2003, spoiling Funny Cide's attempt to win the Triple Crown series. His broodmare sire, Colonial Affair, won the Belmont in 1993.
On Apr.5, Roman Emperor finished seventh in the Wood Memorial. In the Jan.5 Count Fleet Stakes, he went third, and in the Feb.2 Whirlaway Stakes he placed second. All those events were at Aqueduct Race Course. The colt's earnings have reached $159,803.
Jeremy Rose, who took Icabad Crane to a third place show in the Preakness Stakes, has also ridden Roman Emperor.
Other Belmont possibles include Anak Nakal, Behindatthebar, Macho Again (the Preakness runner-up), and Tale of Ekati.
