![](\"http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Components/Art/SPORTS/Projects/040526_BelmontStakes/Header_Handicap_Belmont2.gif\")
";
spt_Belmont08.appNavStyle = 4;
spt_Belmont08.bDhtml = 0;
spt_Belmont08.appLayout = 3;
spt_Belmont08.copyHeight = 340;
spt_Belmont08.copyWidth = 475;
spt_Belmont08.copyMargin = 9;
spt_Belmont08.headlineStyle = "color:cc0000;font-weight:bold;";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","","","","","", "", "", "", "", "right", "", "", "273", "275", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Intro","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Components/Art/SPORTS/Projects/040526_BelmontStakes/2005_belmont_default4.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "336", "495", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "Post position: 8
Lifetime starts: 7
Record: 2 wins, 1 second, 0 thirds
Earnings: $243,416
Jockey: Julian Leparoux
Trainer: Nick Zito
Owner: Four Roses Thoroughbreds
Pedigree: Victory Gallop/Misk (Quiet American)
Key facts: Started career with a bang, winning two of three starts at 2, but hasn’t gotten going this year, with best effort a closing fifth in the Wood Memorial. He followed that effort up with a no-threat seventh in the Kentucky Derby. Accentuating the positive, he was freshened for this, has a Hall of Fame trainer in his corner and is by a stallion who won the Belmont Stakes.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Big Brown","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/ArtAndPhoto-Fronts/COVER/080531/080531-bigbrown-vlg-8p.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "Justin Lane", "EPA file", "273", "209", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 2-5
Post position: 1
Lifetime starts: 5
Record: 5 firsts, 0 seconds, 0 thirds
Earnings: $2,714,500
Jockey: Kent Desormeaux
Trainer: Richard Dutrow Jr.
Owner: IEAH Stables and Paul Pompa Jr.
Pedigree: Boundary/Mien (Nuryev)
Key facts: Kept his record spotless with almost effortless victory in the Preakness. Beyer speed figure of 100 earned in the Preakness was the lowest in the 18 years they have been commercially available, but he undoubtedly could have run faster if Desormeaux had asked him. Hoof problem since then kept him out of training for a few days, but don’t see that affecting his fitness. Looks very tough.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Da’ Tara","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/ap/9dca1631-c368-4d5b-bb8f-a9d8c19c26ce.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "Julie Jacobson", "AP", "273", "251", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 30-1
Post position: 6
Lifetime starts: 7
Record: 1 win, 2 seconds, 1 third
Earnings: $64,067
Jockey: Alan Garcia
Trainer: Nick Zito
Owner: Robert V. LaPenta
Pedigree: Tiznow/Torchera (Pirate’s Bounty)
Key facts: Late entry from Zito/LaPenta camp, but he will not run as an entry with stablemate Anak Nakal. A newcomer to the Triple Crown chase, colt is only member of the field apart from Big Brown with good early speed and looms the likely pace-setter. His best race of the year was a second-place finish in the $100,000 Barbaro Stakes on the Preakness undercard. He’ll need to do much better to compete here.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Denis of Cork","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/ArtAndPhoto-Fronts/SPORTS/080502/g-spt-080502-derby-1020a.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "Matthew Stockman", "Getty Images file", "273", "183", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 12-1
Post position: 4
Lifetime starts: 5
Record: 3 wins, 0 seconds, 1 third
Earnings: $413,552
Jockey: Robby Albarado
Trainer: David Carroll
Owner: Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.
Pedigree: Harlan’s Holiday/Unbridled Girl (Unbridled)
Key facts: Closed strongly from last to finish third in the Kentucky Derby, 8 1/4 lengths behind Big Brown. Colt sat out Preakness, so he’s had plenty of time to recover from that effort, which might help him. Pedigree and late-running style both suggest the distance will be to his liking, but it’s hard to see him turning the tables on the Preakness and Derby winner.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Guadalcanal","","","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 50-1
Lifetime starts: 5
Record: 0 wins, 2 seconds, 1 third
Earnings: $16,100
Post position: 2
Jockey: Javier Castellano
Trainer: Fred Seitz
Owner: Fred Seitz
Pedigree: Graeme Hall/Bessette (Quest for Fame (GB))
Key facts: Surprise entrant is a maiden, meaning he has yet to win a race. He can handle the distance, as he exits a maiden 1 1/2-mile turf race at Churchill Downs in which he closed strongly to finish second by a nose. Needless to say, this is a much tougher bunch. But since some may not take to the distance as well as he did, can’t blame low-profile owner/trainer from taking a shot.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Icabad Crane","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photo_StoryLevel/080511/Icabad_Crane.htease.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "Jim Mccue", "AP", "110", "146", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 20-1
Post position: 10
Lifetime starts: 5
Record: 3 fwinsirsts, 0 seconds, 2 thirds
Earnings: $235,400
Jockey: Jeremy Rose
Trainer: H. Graham Motion
Owner: Earle I. Mack
Pedigree: Jump Start/Adorahy (Rahy)
Key facts: New York-bred colt rallied along the rail to finish third, 5 3/4 lengths behind Big Brown in the Preakness. He was forced to steady rounding the far turn or he could have finished second, since he ended up only a half-length behind runner-up Macho Again. The problem is he was running hard in the late stages while Big Brown was on cruise control through the stretch.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Macho Again","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/getty/gyi0051957473.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "right", "Matthew Stockman", "Getty Images", "273", "181", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 20-1
Post position: 3
Lifetime starts: 9
Record: 3 wins, 3 seconds, 0 thirds
Earnings: $343,761
Jockey: Garrett Gomez
Trainer: Dallas Stewart
Owner: West Point Thoroughbreds
Pedigree: Macho Uno/Go Donna Go (Wild Again)
Key facts: Preakness runner-up won the Derby Trial in his previous start, so he’s developing into a nice 3-year-old. Most experienced horse in the field will need to improve to threaten the top choice, but that can be said of all of Big Brown’s rivals. Encouraged that last year’s Eclipse Award-winning jockey takes over and trainer, a former assistant to D. Wayne Lukas, knows his way around the Triple Crown circuit.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Ready's Echo","","","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "David Quinn", "AP", "273", "147", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 30-1
Post position: 9
Lifetime starts: 4
Record: 1 win , 2 seconds, 1 third
Earnings: $67,200
Jockey: John Velazquez
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Owner: Let's Go Stable
Pedigree: More Than Ready/Menekineko (Kingmambo)
Key facts: Ridgling (a horse with an undescended testicle) is just starting to come into his own. His biggest claim to fame so far is that he ran second behind Kentucky Derby runner Z Fortune in his debut last summer at Saratoga. He broke very slowly in the Peter Pan Stakes (Gr. 2) but finished well to be third behind Casino Drive. May turn out to be a good one, but this is a tough place for him to try and find himself.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Tale of Ekati","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photo_StoryLevel/April/080422/Brill-Horseracing/brill-Tale%20of%20Ekati.htease.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "David Alcosser", "AP", "104", "148", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Morning-line odds: 20-1
Post position: 7
Lifetime starts: 7
Record: 3 wins, 1 second, 0 thirds
Earnings: $869,200
Jockey: Eibar Coa
Trainer: Barclay Tagg
Owner: Charles E. Fipke
Pedigree: Tale of the Cat/Silence Beauty (JPN) (Sunday Silence)
Key facts: Wood Memorial (Gr. 1) winner finished fourth in the Kentucky Derby despite encountering traffic problems at the top of the stretch. Colt wasn’t going to win that day, but he would have been closer than the 11 lengths he finished behind Big Brown. He’s been training forwardly since that race and has a very sharp trainer calling the shots. Not out of the question.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","The track","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Slideshows/_production/ss_070609_BelmontStakes/ss_070609_BelmontStakes_tease.htease.jpg","","", "sub", "", "", "", "right", "Jason Szenes", "EPA", "110", "147", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
The Belmont Stakes is the longest of the three Triple Crown races at 1 1/2 miles. Known as the “test of the champion,” the race for 3-year-olds is run at Belmont Park, a 1 1/2-mile oval that is is the largest dirt course in American thoroughbred racing. The race begins in front of the grandstand, which gives jockeys time to move their mounts in to save ground before the first turn. The Belmont’s marathon distance tends to favor closers, but winners typically are within 3 lengths of the front-runner by the time the field turns for home.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","The factors","","","","", "sub", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
There is no limit on the factors that can be considered in handicapping a race — some experts even try to compensate for the wind when evaluating a previous performance by a horse. But for today, let's confine ourselves to six of the most important considerations.
Click on factors at left to learn more.
";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Speed and pace","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
A handicapper who can correctly predict how a race will be run has a much better chance of winning than the horseplayer with no idea which horses will go to the front, which will challenge the leaders turning for home and which will attempt to run down the leaders in the final strides.
The reason, as handicapping pioneer Huey Mahl put it, is that pace makes the race.
The basic theory of pace handicapping is this: The faster a horse runs at the beginning of a race, the less energy it will have for the stretch run. As a general rule, a race in which three or more horses battle for the lead will result in a faster-than-average early pace and set the stage for a come-from-behind horse to win. Conversely, a race in which a lone horse is allowed to set a comfortable pace tends to favor the front-runner or horses that can stay within a length or two of the lead.
Because of its marathon 1 1/2-mile distance, the Belmont Stakes has a reputation as a \"rider’s race,\" meaning that tactics tend to have a big impact on the outcome.
The pace seems clearer than usual this year, with Da’ Tara, who is owned and trained by the same connections as Anak Nakal, probably to set a solid early pace.
That is designed to be a trap for Big Brown, who is the only other horse with speed in the race, but it’s unlikely to work. The Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner has shown the ability to “rate,” or relax, in the early stages of a race, and Desormeaux figures to just let him get in a comfortable stride early in the race and wait until Da’ Tara starts to tire.
Bottom line is that even though we have a good idea of the pace picture, it doesn’t appear to be a big factor in this particular race.
Give all horses a neutral in this category.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Class","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
When racetrackers talk about a horse’s class, they are talking about a combination of natural ability, consistency and heart. Handicappers have tried different approaches to try to quantify it, such as average earnings per start or the number of victories in Grade I stakes races, which draw the very best horses.
No matter how you define it, history says it is advisable in the Triple Crown races to favor horses who faced top competition as 2-year-olds, running well in at least one graded stakes, and who have returned to run credibly in similar situations at 3.
Give a plus in this category to Big Brown and Tale of Ekati.
Give a neutral to Anak Nakal, who just missed qualifying.
Negatives to the rest.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Pedigree","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Pedigree analysis has lost a lot of its luster in recent years, when several horses won spring classics despite bloodlines that indicated they would never last the distance.
But it’s still worth having at least a passing acquaintance with “dosage,” a method of measuring stamina in a horse’s pedigree.
Dosage has proven an accurate yardstick for the Kentucky Derby, where a dosage index higher than 4.00 has been a big negative over the years. Unfortunately, this isn’t a big help, since only Anak Nakal gets a slight knock for having a dosage index right on the cutoff at 4.00.
To try to narrow the field a bit, we’ll give negatives to horses that have not shown they can handle the marathon distances beyond 1 1/8 miles: Da'Tara and Ready’s Echo.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Form","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Form -- shorthand for the way a horse has run in its most recent races -- looks deceptively simple to evaluate, but this factor contains numerous traps for the handicapper.
Although it's better to enter a big race off several strong efforts, horses are not machines and there is no guarantee that a contestant's last race will be repeated on race day. Likewise, horses that have run poorly in their recent races can suddenly rediscover that winning formula. (Remember 2004 Belmont Stakes winner Birdstone, who paid $74 when he foiled Smarty Jones’ Triple Crown bid?) And there's always the dangerous improving horse, who can turn in the race of a lifetime when you least suspect it.
Nonetheless, the horse who enters the Belmont Stakes off several strong efforts (finishing within 2 lengths of the winner) in recent races receive high marks in this category: Big Brown.
Give slight negatives to the horses with one strong effort in their last two starts – Da'Tara, Guadalcanal, Icabad Crane, Macho Again, Ready’s Echo and Tale of Ekati.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Jockey","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
The Belmont Stakes points a white-hot spotlight on riders, and it can be dazzling to those who never have stood in its glare before. Being tongue-tied in interviews is one thing, but if a rider's nervousness and excitement makes even the slightest impact on his or her judgment, the results on the racetrack are likely to be disappointing.
Give a plus to the horses whose riders have won the Belmont Stakes before: Icabad Crane (Jeremy Rose) and Ready's Echo (John Velazquez).
We’ll give a slightly less enthusiastic push to riders who have won other Triple Crown races: Big Brown (Kent Desormeaux) and Denis of Cork (Robby Albarado ).
Negative marks to the remainder of the field.";
spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("","Trainer","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "");
spt_Belmont08[i-1].body = "
Unlike the jockeys, who will make any mistakes in the blink of an eye, trainers make their errors -– if any -– in the weeks before the race.
Some fine horsemen and horsewomen have been thrown off their game by the unaccustomed pressure and scrutiny they face once it becomes clear that there’s a legitimate Triple Crown prospect in the barn. Suddenly, instead of the quiet thudding of hoofbeats, the trainer is facing a phalanx of microphones and fielding endless questions about everything from choice of horseshoes to whether that last workout wasn’t just a tad bit slow.
The bottom line is that some trainers will become overly cautious in their preparations, overlooking an important detail or forgetting to pass a key piece of information to an exercise rider. The result may not be disastrous, but even the slightest misstep can be enough to get your horse beat.
Give plusses to horses whose trainers have won the Belmont: Anak Nakal and Da'Tara (Nick Zito) and Ready’s Echo (Todd Pletcher).
Give the slightest deduction to horses whose trainers have won other Triple Crown races: Big Brown (Rick Dutrow Jr.) and Tale of Ekati (Barclay Tagg).
Negatives to the remainder of the field."; spt_Belmont08[i++] = new Array("http://msnbc.msn.com/id/24922017","Picks","","","","", "sub", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); // END editorial data