Quote:
Originally Posted by horsefan2019
The owners know the type of horse they have. Which was one that was an 80-1 shot at the Derby that had a perfect trip to win the race. They also know they probably don't have a super horse which is why they were content in not running in a race that they felt might not have a shot of winning. So they get a horse who won the Derby with 5 weeks of rest going into the Belmont where it would have a very good shot at winning.
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To be less silly about it, obviously there's an argument for waiting for the Belmont. Though I might add, it's not nearly as strong as it might appear:
1. There's always at least a chance of another pace collapse in the Preakness. I.e., entering the Preakness isn't any more of a risk than entering the Derby was. And if you do win the Preakness, now you're looking at a possibility of something of immense value.
2. 5 weeks rest is overrated. We all know this, right? Lots of Derby winners win the Preakness, and lots of cheaper horses still run back on a couple of weeks rest.
3. It's not like the Belmont actually favors deep closers. 1 1/2 mile dirt races sometimes DON'T favor them, because the paces are so slow. A paceless Belmont that a closer can't get up in time to win is actually just as likely, or more likely, than a paceless Preakness.
