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  Now that the Triple Crown run is over and more than five weeks have passed since the Eight Belles tragedy, I thought it would be a good time to pick the brain of Larry Jones. Thought of by many as not only one of the most talented, but most respected trainers in the sport, Jones gave his take on a few different topics, including Eight ...

  Moments after the Belmont Stakes, once the shock wore off, the first words out of my mouth were, ''This is why horse racing is the most unpredictable and crazy sport there is. They could run that race 100 more times and I still would not wager $1 on Da' Tara.'' Now that 24 hours have passed and I've had time to digest it all, I feel the ...

  As I wrote yesterday, Big Brown will win the Belmont. With that already established, I believe the best way to make money on Saturday is by playing the late Pick 4, which is a $1 million guarenteed. Look at it this way, it really becomes a Pick 3 when you single Big Brown in the final leg. And if you get one price horse in the middle, the ...

  The nearly three decade drought is over. Big Brown takes over after six furlongs, opens up a clear lead, and holds off a very game Denis of Cork by two lengths to win the Belmont Stakes. That is my prediction and although it is the way I see the Belmont unfolding, to back myself up I will also use Denis of Cork in the top spot. Since the ...

  I will have my Belmont selections on Thursday, but for now, I'd like to take a moment and mention one horse that will not be in any of my tickets: Casino Drive. Surprised? Many of you probably are. After all, he is the horse most say has the best chance of knocking off Big Brown. Not me. I know all the positives. His Peter Pan ...

  If you haven't seen the latest comments from Rick Dutrow Jr. regarding Smarty Jones and what he feels was questionable training by John Servis leading up to the 2004 Belmont Stakes, here they are: ''I think maybe the way they trained that horse for that race going up to the Belmont had a lot to do with him getting beat,'' Dutrow said. ''I ...

  So you are going to try to beat Big Brown huh? Me too. Short of hitting the superfecta or Pick 4, there is no way to make any significant money in this race if Big Brown wins. With that in mind, here is one longshot to consider in the Belmont: Anak Nakal. Anak Nakal? I know, he hasn't been better than fifth in four races this year and on ...

  Before I wrote my May 21 post - A Plea to Iavarone: Let Him Run - I put a call into Mike Iavarone, hoping to get the owner's thoughts on whether or not Big Brown would race after the Belmont. I did not expect a call back, being that Iavarone is in the midst of the craziest time of his life, and is probably overwhelmed with interview ...

  On May 21, Rick Dutrow Jr. told Blood-Horse reporter Karen Johnson that ''the plan is the Belmont, Travers and Breeders' Cup'' for Big Brown. If that really is the plan, horse racing just got a tremendous boost. And I think IEAH Stables' Mike Iavarone deserves a ton of credit for making it happen. With all the talk about horse racing's ...

  So, it's a foregone conclusion, huh? Big Brown is our 12th Triple Crown winner. As we sit here I'm sure Mike Iavarone and Rick Dutrow are planning the outrageous party, Kent Desormeaux is preparing something clever to say in his post-race speech, and thousands of racing fans who would normally stay home are making plans to be in New York ...