More Brown Thoughts
There have been a few blog comments surface over the weekend criticizing Kent's ride on Big Brown. And some have defended Kent's act of pulling the horse up in the stretch as being "noble" and "protecting the horse". What people don't realize is it's not easy to pull a horse up during a race, and the act of stopping a horse in full stride is a huge mental frustration for the horse with the additional risk of physical harm as the jockey forces the horse out of competition. Believe me, you don't pull a horse up during a race because he is not going to win, just as a baseball team doesn't decide to not come out in the 9th inning just because they are behind in the score. It's insane and it really points to Kent's mental state at the time.
Big Brown being pulled up before the race is over
The smart thing for Kent to do was to let the horse finish the race, as there was nothing physically wrong with Big Brown. Kent even admitted he knew there was nothing wrong with the horse.
One thing I like to observe (any time, but especially when the Triple Crown is on the line) is how the horse acts in the post parade and going into the starting gate. Back in 1981, Pleasant Colony won the Derby and the Preakness but he was nervous and washed out during the post parade, tipping his hand (or hoof) that winning the Belmont wasn't in the cards. Ditto for Funnycide in 2003.
How did Big Brown look during the post parade of the Belmont on Saturday? He looked fantastic! He was calm, collected, and very impressive. Once I saw him acting so well, I really got excited and nervous and started thinking that maybe we were really looking at a Triple Crown winner in the next couple minutes. My excitement turned to disbelief when Kent panicked around the first turn. The rest is history, it's just not the history we were hoping for.
And there are people who were rooting against Big Brown, because of their dislike for Big Brown's owners and/or trainer. I totally understand that, and Dutrow's claim that a Big Brown victory was a "foregone conclusion" was not endearing, and will go down in racing history as one of the all time regrettable quotable quotes. Horse racing humbles even the most arrogant people, except for maybe owner Michael Ivarone who remains "confused as anybody" and states "we're perplexed, nobody can figure this out" as if it isn't possible that the horse just wasn't going to win on Saturday.
Earth to Ivarone: Watch the replay. And if you are still confused, spend a few more years in the racing game and you might gain some knowledge.
IEAH Stables President Michael Ivarone
Undefeated horses such as Big Brown is the worst thing that can happen to most people. They get to thinking that the horse cannot be beaten, and the pressure mounts with each race for the horse's race record to remain perfect. Throw in trying to break a 30 year Triple Crown dry spell and the pressure gets even worse.
Newsflash---they all get beat, even the greatest of the greats, such as Man O War and Secretariat.
Surely they won't retire Big Brown before he gets the chance to finish out the year and redeem himself. Lots of people think we have seen the last of Big Brown on the racetrack. They figure the owners don't want to risk embarrassment of another defeat. The only thing embarrassing is how poorly Kent rode Big Brown in the Belmont Stakes, and I hope it's not the last image we have of Big Brown.
Here's hoping we get another chance to see Big Brown run. And maybe a jockey change is in order.
Big Brown being pulled up before the race is over
The smart thing for Kent to do was to let the horse finish the race, as there was nothing physically wrong with Big Brown. Kent even admitted he knew there was nothing wrong with the horse.
One thing I like to observe (any time, but especially when the Triple Crown is on the line) is how the horse acts in the post parade and going into the starting gate. Back in 1981, Pleasant Colony won the Derby and the Preakness but he was nervous and washed out during the post parade, tipping his hand (or hoof) that winning the Belmont wasn't in the cards. Ditto for Funnycide in 2003.
How did Big Brown look during the post parade of the Belmont on Saturday? He looked fantastic! He was calm, collected, and very impressive. Once I saw him acting so well, I really got excited and nervous and started thinking that maybe we were really looking at a Triple Crown winner in the next couple minutes. My excitement turned to disbelief when Kent panicked around the first turn. The rest is history, it's just not the history we were hoping for.
And there are people who were rooting against Big Brown, because of their dislike for Big Brown's owners and/or trainer. I totally understand that, and Dutrow's claim that a Big Brown victory was a "foregone conclusion" was not endearing, and will go down in racing history as one of the all time regrettable quotable quotes. Horse racing humbles even the most arrogant people, except for maybe owner Michael Ivarone who remains "confused as anybody" and states "we're perplexed, nobody can figure this out" as if it isn't possible that the horse just wasn't going to win on Saturday.
Earth to Ivarone: Watch the replay. And if you are still confused, spend a few more years in the racing game and you might gain some knowledge.
IEAH Stables President Michael Ivarone
Undefeated horses such as Big Brown is the worst thing that can happen to most people. They get to thinking that the horse cannot be beaten, and the pressure mounts with each race for the horse's race record to remain perfect. Throw in trying to break a 30 year Triple Crown dry spell and the pressure gets even worse.
Newsflash---they all get beat, even the greatest of the greats, such as Man O War and Secretariat.
Surely they won't retire Big Brown before he gets the chance to finish out the year and redeem himself. Lots of people think we have seen the last of Big Brown on the racetrack. They figure the owners don't want to risk embarrassment of another defeat. The only thing embarrassing is how poorly Kent rode Big Brown in the Belmont Stakes, and I hope it's not the last image we have of Big Brown.
Here's hoping we get another chance to see Big Brown run. And maybe a jockey change is in order.