Essential Quality Favored From Post 2 in Belmont Stakes

As far as post position draws for Triple Crown races go, the $1.5 million Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1) is pretty much anti-climactic.

With a lengthy run to the sweeping first turn at Belmont Park and a field about half the size of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), there's no reason to sweat out the posts as they are assigned on a one-by-one basis.

Even the rail is not as loathsome as it is for the Run for the Roses.

"With only eight horses in there I wasn't really worried about it," said newly minted Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, who owns three Belmont Stakes wins and will start a trio of 3-year-olds in the 153rd edition of The Test of the Champion June 5, "but I'm happy with the way it shook out. You have such a long run (to the first turn) that the posts don't matter too much."

So, when a field of eight, the smallest since American Pharoah   beat seven rivals in 2015, was entered June 1 in a mile-and-a-half race that will resume its spot on the Triple Crown calendar as the final and longest classic after last year's realignment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the most interesting part of the morning was not who will break from where. Rather it was the morning line for a highly competitive race that may lack the drama of a Triple Crown bid after Medina Spirit  went down to defeat in the Preakness Stakes (G1) but promises to be exciting to watch and a superb betting affair.

In that regard, the role of the favorite went to Godolphin's Essential Quality , the 2-year-old champion who was fourth by a length in the Kentucky Derby when he suffered his lone loss in six career starts.

"He ran what I thought was a winning race in the Derby; he didn't have the trip, but he showed up and he's been improving in every start," said trainer Brad Cox. "I'm confident that he can handle the mile and a half. Just based off his works and his races, he's very steady and doesn't seem to get tired. He has a tremendous amount of stamina that I think he was just blessed with based on his pedigree. 

"He's got a nice balance of speed and stamina, which is what it takes to win any grade 1. He's never shown signs that he couldn't (get the 12 furlongs), but you never know until you do it." 

After that, Preakness winner Rombauer  was 3-1 and Hot Rod Charlie , who finished a head in front of Essential Quality when third in the Kentucky Derby, was 7-2. Right behind was Rock Your World  at 9-2 and Known Agenda  at 6-1 before the prices jumped to 15-1 and more in a race that will lack a starter in all three legs of the Triple Crown for the first time since 2010.

Godolphin's Rebel's Romance  was withdrawn from consideration before Tuesday's draw due to a hind leg infection.

KING: Rebel's Romance to Miss Belmont With Hind Leg Infection

Yet with more than half the field at 6-1 or less, it vividly reflects how a lively battle awaits on Saturday at 6:49 p.m. ET (NBC TV) or so when the field breaks from the starting gate.

"It's a very competitive group," said Michael McCarthy, who trains Rombauer for John and Diane Fradkin. "We're going to run into some good horses Saturday. All we can do is bring our horse there in the best shape possible and if he is victorious that would be fantastic."

After last year's Belmont Stakes was shifted to the opening leg of the Triple Crown at a 1 1/8-mile distance with no fans in attendance, New York's premier race will be viewed by a crowd of about 11,000 at Belmont Park as it returns to its traditional mile-and-a-half distance that creates a question mark for all of the starters, none of whom have raced beyond 1 1/4 miles.

"It's such a rare distance, you never know how a horse will handle it," said Doug O'Neill, who trains Hot Rod Charlie (post 4), an Oxbow   colt, for an exuberant ownership group that includes Roadrunner Racing, Boat Racing, Strauss Brothers Racing, and Gainesway Thoroughbreds. "It's a kinder-run race. You assume the pace will be slow early and I think (Hot Rod Charlie) is versatile enough that the added distance will not be a problem."

While the Belmont Stakes centers on redemption for Essential Quality (post 2) after his loss as the 5-2 favorite in the Kentucky Derby, it will offer a chance for Rombauer (post 3) to prove his 11-1 victory at Pimlico Race Course in the middle jewel was not a fluke.

The Preakness was the third career win and first on dirt for Rombauer, who was third behind Essential Quality in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2).

"I'm very happy with what I am seeing from him. It's what you're hoping for after a race like the Preakness," McCarthy said. "It's a big ask of any horse going a mile and a half but he has the makings of a horse that it's well within him."

Whether Pletcher has the strongest hand remains to be seen, but he surely has the biggest with Known Agenda, Bourbonic , and Overtook .

"I'm pleased with the way all three are coming into the race," Pletcher said. "It's been pretty steady preparation for the race with no hiccups."

St. Elias Stable's Known Agenda (post 6) won the Curlin Florida Derby Presented by Hill 'n' Dale Farms at Xalapa (G1) then was the unfortunate recipient of the dreaded rail in the Run for the Roses. Unable to establish an inside position quickly enough, the son of Curlin   was shuffled back to 17th in the early stages then showed some life in the late stages to finish ninth.

"It was hard to make up ground in the Kentucky Derby, but if you watch it from the three-sixteenths pole to the wire, (Known Agenda) was running as well as anyone else," Pletcher said. "He just had too much to do turning for home. It was what some people might call a sneaky good race."

Calumet Farm's homebred Bourbonic (post 1, 15-1) won the Wood Memorial Stakes Presented by Resorts World Casino (G2) in a 72-1 shocker, then finished 13th in the Kentucky Derby.

"I like the way he's doing and he seems like he wants to stay the distance, so we hope we get a ground-saving trip and see if he'll stay that far," Pletcher said about the Bernardini   colt.

Both Bourbonic and Known Agenda are on the same path followed by Pletcher's three previous Belmont Stakes winners, all of whom raced Kentucky Derby weekend and went into The Test of the Champion with about five weeks of preparation at Belmont Park.

Overtook (post 8, 20-1), a son of Curlin owned by Repole Stable, St. Elias Stable, Michael Tabor, Mrs. John Magnier, and Derrick Smith, is coming off a third in the May 8 Peter Pan Stakes (G3) at Belmont Park.

"His last couple of works after the Peter Pan have been an improvement and we feel like he'll handle the distance," Pletcher said. 

Hronis Racing and David Michael Talla's Rock Your World (post 7) won the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby (G1) on the front end and seemed likely to set the pace in the Run for the Roses, but he broke slowly and then was sandwiched between two horses and wound up at the back of the pack. Unable to flash his customary early speed, he was never better than 10th and finished 17th as the 9-2 second choice for trainer John Sadler.

"He was pretty much out of the race at the beginning," said jockey Joel Rosario, who rode the Candy Ride   colt in the Kentucky Derby and will handle him again Saturday. "He had to run wide and got dirt in the face. He's the kind of horse that wants to be in the race early. When he got left at the gate, it left him with too much to do. I'm excited for this race to see him at his best."

Japan's France Go de Ina  (post 5, 30-1) made his United States debut in the Preakness, racing in third in the early stages before tiring and ending up seventh, 17 1/2 lengths behind Rombauer. On a positive note for the son of Will Take Charge   owned by Yuji Inaida and trained by Hideyuki Mori, the mile-and-a-half distance, sweeping turns, and sandy track at Belmont Park should suit him better than the track at Pimlico. Tokyo Racecourse is much akin to Belmont Park in size and has a main track composed of sand.

"The size of Belmont is very similar to Tokyo, except that the turf course is on the outside," said exercise rider and assistant trainer Masaki Takano through interpreter Kate Hunter. "Coming to a track like Pimlico could be tough. We don't know about the distance but from the way the track is built here it is better for him."

The field for the 2021 Belmont Stakes presented by @NYRABets! pic.twitter.com/hdi6a3XcCh

— Belmont Stakes (@BelmontStakes) June 1, 2021

Ticketing for the 153rd Belmont Stakes can be purchased through www.belmontstakes.com.

The Belmont Stakes will be the highlight of a card with eight grade 1 stakes.

Entries: Belmont S. Presented by NYRA Bets (G1)

Belmont Park, Saturday, June 05, 2021, Race 11

• Grade I
• 1 1/2m
• Dirt
• $1,500,000
• 3 yo
• 6:49 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Bourbonic (KY)	Kendrick Carmouche	126	Todd A. Pletcher	15/1
2	2Essential Quality (KY)	Luis Saez	126	Brad H. Cox	2/1
3	3Rombauer (KY)	John R. Velazquez	126	Michael W. McCarthy	3/1
4	4Hot Rod Charlie (KY)	Flavien Prat	126	Doug F. O'Neill	7/2
5	5France Go de Ina (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	126	Hideyuki Mori	30/1
6	6Known Agenda (KY)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	126	Todd A. Pletcher	6/1
7	7Rock Your World (KY)	Joel Rosario	126	John W. Sadler	9/2
8	8Overtook (KY)	Manuel Franco	126	Todd A. Pletcher	20/1