Essential Quality, Rombauer Head to Belmont to Wrap Up Triple Crown

The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival runs from Thursday, June 3 through Saturday, June 5, and is headlined by the 153rd running of the Belmont Stakes. The festival will encompass 17 total stakes, including eight Grade 1s on Belmont Stakes Day, capped by the “Test of the Champion” for 3-year-olds in the 1 1/2-mile final leg of the Triple Crown.

Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit is not in the field but Preakness winner Rombauer is set to meet the 2020 Champion Two-Year-Old Colt Essential Quality, fourth in the Kentucky Derby, his first career loss.

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Trained by Michael McCarthy, Rombauer garnered a career-best 102 Beyer Speed Figure for his rallying 3 1/2-length score under jockey Flavien Prat in the 1 3/16-mile Preakness.

With Prat slated to ride Belmont Stakes rival Hot Rod Charlie, Hall of Famer and two-time Belmont Stakes-winner John Velazquez has picked up the mount on Rombauer, who is stabled at trainer Jonathan Thomas’ barn at Belmont.

With Velazquez up for the first time, Rombauer worked outside of Thomas-trained maiden winner That Quality, edging past his rival at the wire and galloping out strong through the turn. Rombauer was clocked in 50.01 seconds over the fast main track with That Quality finishing up in 50.07.

“I was very happy with the work,” said McCarthy, who watched the breeze from the Belmont grandstand. “I just wanted him to go ahead and get familiar with Johnny. He went in 13.2, 25.4 and 50 and 2. He came through the lane nicely and galloped out from the wire to the mile and three-eighths pole in 12 and 2, so I’m happy with everything I saw.

“It seemed like he was well in hand at all times,” added McCarthy. “Johnny asked him to gallop out a little bit going underneath the wire and the horse seemed to respond nicely. I’m very happy with what I saw today.”

Velazquez said he was pleased with his first time aboard the Twirling Candy bay.

“We hooked up at the half mile pole and we started breezing together really nice through the first part and then I let him gallop out after the wire. It was a very good gallop out,” said Velazquez.

The versatile Rombauer, a winner on turf, dirt and synthetic, captured the El Camino Real Derby on the Golden Gate Fields Tapeta in February. He entered the Preakness from a good third in the Grade 2 Blue Grass in April, won by Belmont rival Essential Quality at Keeneland.

Rombauer arrived at Belmont the Monday after the Preakness and McCarthy said the talented colt has settled in well.

“One of the nice things about him is his mind is very good and he’s very comfortable wherever he’s at,” said McCarthy. “He’ll have an easy day tomorrow and a walk day here in the shed row and get back to it again on Sunday.”

McCarthy said he’s looking forward to what is shaping up to be a competitive Belmont Stakes field with as many as 11 starters.

“I’m just hoping for a good six or seven days here,” said McCarthy. “The horse is in a nice rhythm and I hope all the participants get into the starting gate as well as they can and we just settle it on the racetrack. That’s all you want in any of these big races. You just want everybody to get there in good shape.”

Pletcher puts final preparations on G1 Belmont Stakes contingent

Friday morning was a busy one for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher as he worked Known Agenda, Bourbonic and Overtook in their final moves for the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets.

The trio of runners completed their preparations for the third leg of the Triple Crown under partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the 60s, while dodging heavy rain expected for the Nassau County region on Friday evening.

Arriving at the main track around 8:45 a.m. in the first set after the break, Known Agenda, with Irad Ortiz, Jr. up, breezed in tandem with stablemate and fellow St. Elias Stable color-bearer Dr Post, ridden by exercise rider Hector Ramos.

NYRA clockers caught the pair through splits of 24.60 and 36.00 with Known Agenda, to the inside, finishing off ahead of his workmate in 1:01.00 while Dr Post completed his five furlongs in 1:01.20.

There were some slightly anxious moments during the breeze as the pair found themselves in behind another pair of workers. Despite the unexpected close company, Pletcher said that neither he nor Ortiz, Jr. were fazed.

“We got caught in behind a couple of horses and they were kind of off the rail and spread out a bit which made it a little tricky,” Pletcher said. “In the end, Irad thought it was good. He said that Known Agenda had more of a target, jumped into the bridle and was on the muscle. He finished up and galloped out well. Dr Post had to eat a little bit of dirt, that’s just kind of the way it worked out. After the break it can be a little bit busy.”

Ninth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby last out, Known Agenda won the Grade 1 Florida Derby on March 27 at Gulfstream Park with a ground-saving trip from fifth before drawing clear in upper stretch to a 2 ¾-length win. A maiden winner at second asking defeating eventual graded stakes winner Greatest Honour by a head, Known Agenda was fifth in the Grade 3 Sam F. Davis at Tampa Bay Downs before defeating winners at Gulfstream Park by 11 lengths.

“He’s obviously an experienced horse,” Pletcher said. “He’s unfazed. Irad was able to place him where he wasn’t getting much kickback. Dr Post got more of the kickback, so I told Irad to get away from that and hold him out at that point. In his case, it worked out very well. Dr Post, I would have preferred not to take much kickback, but he seemed to handle it fine. Irad liked the way he handled it and so did I. He thought it was a positive. He took a bit [of kickback in the Derby], but not a ton. With the trip he got in the Florida Derby and in Tampa, he’s got plenty of experience, so we aren’t worried about that.”

While Known Agenda targets the Belmont Stakes, Dr Post, second in last year’s running, will point to the Grade 1, $1 million Hill ‘N’ Dale Metropolitan Handicap.

About ten minutes later, Bourbonic and Overtook put the final touches on their Belmont Stakes preparations when caught through an opening quarter-mile in 23.60 before completing the half-mile work in 48.49. The pair galloped out five furlongs in an authoritative 1:00.80. Jockey Manny Franco was aboard Overtook while exercise rider Amelia Green piloted Bourbonic.

A winner of the Grade 2 Wood Memorial presented by Resorts World Casino at 72-1 odds, Bourbonic finished 13th in the Kentucky Derby and will attempt to give historic Calumet Farm their first Belmont Stakes triumph in 73 years since Citation swept the Triple Crown in 1948.

Pletcher indicated that Bourbonic typically displays a strong gallop out in his works.

“He’s a horse that at times will work like he’s capable of stepping up,” Pletcher said. “The one thing he does is gallop out strongly. He’s always given indications that the distance would suit him.”

Pletcher said he has been particularly impressed with Overtook since his late-closing third in the Grade 3 Peter Pan and that the regally bred son of Curlin has been showing improvement into his next engagement.

“Overtook is historically not an overly ambitious work horse, but I thought he went well this morning,” Pletcher said. “I was looking for him and Bourbonic to just show they have some decent energy. I think his two breezes since the Peter Pan have been better than what we were seeing beforehand, so I’m happy with that.”

Probable Belmont Stakes Field – 9

Bourbonic (Todd Pletcher / Kendrick Carmouche), Essential Quality (Brad Cox / Luis Saez), France Go de Ina (Hideyuki Mori / Ricardo Santana, Jr.), Hot Rod Charlie (Doug O’Neill / Flavien Prat), Known Agenda (Pletcher / Irad Ortiz Jr.), Overtook (Pletcher / Manny Franco), Rebel’s Romance (Charlie Appleby / Mike Smith), Rock Your World (John Sadler / Joel Rosario), Rombauer (Michael McCarthy / John Velazquez)

POSSIBLE (1): Keepmeinmind (Robertino Diodoro / David Cohen)