2015 Belmont Stakes

[DKW]

Just to put in in perspective, here’s a little gem from last year:

@It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery

1979 - Spectacular Bid, 3rd - He got a safety pin caught in his hoof the morning of the Belmont, plus his jockey moved him to challenge a hopeless longshot early. Probably the best horse to win the first two and lose the Belmont; he won all 9 races the following year and set several track records in doing so.
1981 - Pleasant Colony, 3rd - Improved a ton in the race before the Derby and appeared to be knocked out by the 3 huge efforts going into the Belmont.
1987 - Alysheba, 4th - Uncharacteristically showed speed and tired; the winner had finished a close 2nd in the first two legs so wasn’t a surprise; another horse who was dominant the next year.
1989 - Sunday Silence, 2nd - Had equally-talented archrival, Easy Goer, who loved racing at Belmont and ran the second-fastest Belmont ever that day. Had either of these two horses not had to face each other, they probably would have both won Triple Crowns.
1997- Silver Charm, 2nd - Happened to win the first two legs against a couple of closely matched rivals, and just got run down late by one of them here.
1998 - Real Quiet, 2nd - Just got beaten a nose by equally-talented rival who had finished second in the first two legs after opening up a lead coming out of the turn. By the way, if California Chrome loses tomorrow, I think this is the most likely scenario.
1999 - Charismatic, 3rd - Like Pleasant Colony, improved a ton 1 race before the Derby, and was overused in his 3 straight big efforts. Broke a leg very late in the race; finished anyway but was saved when his jockey jumped off just past the finish.
2002 - War Emblem, 8th? - Pure frontrunner who stumbled out of the gate and was immediately taken out of his game. There are quite a few horses with a front-running running style who quit when unable to reach the lead.
2003 - Funny Cide, 3rd - Was too keen for the race; had a very fast workout that week and tried to lead all the way; beaten by talented rivals, including the Derby favorite who had finished 2nd in that race.
2004 - Smarty Jones, 2nd - Beaten by race tactics. Hounded by two rivals in the early portions of the race and ran way too fast in the middle part of the race as a result; still opened a lead coming out of the turn but couldn’t hold off a fresh challenger who had stayed out of the early fray.
2008 - Big Brown, eased out of the race - Who knows? Take your pick of a) loosened a shoe on the first turn; b) went nuts in the “detention barn” where stakes horses must wait during the day while they are watched; or c) did not receive his monthly dose of (then-legal) steroids for the first time.
2012 - I’ll Have Another, scratched - Scratched the day before the Belmont (and retired) with a flareup of a chronic leg injury.

And then, of course, California Chrome finished 4th. The Triple Crown is like a cycle in baseball, a long winning streak in sumo, or retiring an undefeated champion in boxing. An accomplishment that, while certainly challenging, is far from impossible and has had a lot of contenders go for it, but there’s ALWAYS. SOMETHING. that keeps it from happening.

And he was pulling away at the end. This just isn’t supposed to happen. Supreme achievements have to be incredibly hard-fought and won by inches, if not microns. Brett Favre didn’t coast to a career passing mark. The Red Sox weren’t spoonfed four elimination wins in the 2004 ALCS.

So…all right. Susan Lucci won an Emmy, Shaquille O’Neal won at every level except only college, the Curse got stomped into a bloody paste, Chinese Democracy and Duke Nukem Forever saw the light of day…today another one bites the dust.