By US Racing Team
From Peter Pan to Superman!
Under a brilliant ride by Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, Arcangelo produced a historic finish to win the $1.5 Belmont Stakes (G1) on Saturday for Jena Antonucci, the first female trainer to win a Triple Crown race.
“It’s the horse,’’ Antonucci said. “He’s figured it out. He’s such a big kid. We never worried about the distance. We’ll always be indebted to the horse, his honesty.”
The 3-year-old gray colt did not compete in the two previous Triple Crown races, but his win in the Peter Pan (G3) at Belmont Park on May 13 convinced Antonucci to try the 1 ½-mile Belmont.
“Just so proud of the horse right now,’’ Antonucci said after the 1 ½-length win over 2-1 favorite Forte. “He has the heart of a champion.”
On the 50th anniversary of Secretariat’s record 31-length Belmont win for a Triple Crown sweep, Antonucci – with her first Belmont starter – made her own history.
Training for 13 years, this is by far the biggest win of her career. When Arcangelo crossed the finish line, Antonucci turned and hugged everyone around her in the owner’s area, and Castellano raised an arm to the sky.
The win broke an 0-for-14 Belmont run for Castellano, who won his first Kentucky Derby (G1) aboard Mage on May 6. With Mage sitting out the Belmont, Castellano got the call on Arcangelo. Good choice.
“He’s a wonderful horse,’’ Castellano said. “What he did today, I don’t think is the limit. All the credit to the team. I’m really happy for Jena. She put a lot of effort into devolping the horse.”
Preakness winner National Treasure, trained by Bob Baffert, set the pace as expected and led eight others through fractions of 23.63 seconds for the first quarter, 47.69, 1:12.56, and 1:37.41 for a mile. Arcangelo was content to sit mid-pack under a patient ride from Castellano. As the field rounded the final turn in the 155th edition of the Belmont, Castellano deftly guided Arcangelo up along the inside, and pounced on front-runner National Treasure as the field turned for home.
The Preakness winner battled on gamely but gave way as Forte made a solid move from sixth to finish second, with stablemate Tapit Trice a nose behind in third.
A son of champion Arrogate, Arcangelo is owned by Blue Rose Farm. Sent off at 7-1, Arcangelo returned $17.80 on a $2 win bet. The winning time was 2:29.23.
Hit Show and Angel of Empire dead-heated for fourth followed by National Treasure, Il Miracolo, Red Route One, and Tapit Shoes.
Arcangelo won for the third time in five starts and earned $900,000 to boost his earnings to $1,067,400.
“Never give up,’’ Antonucci, who started riding as a 3-year-old, became an equine veterinarian for a time, and learned under Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas. “And if you can’t find a seat at the table, make your own table and build your team, and never give up.’’
Pletcher, seeking his fifth Belmont win, ran second and third with Forte and Tapit Trice. Forte was scratched from the Derby hours before the race with a foot bruise and missed the Preakness after being placed on the 14-day vet’s list due to the injury.
“A mile and a half wasn’t far enough,’’ Pletcher said, laughing. “I’m super proud of both horses. I knew we were asking a lot coming off the 10-week layoff (with Forte). He got shuffled back a little bit and once he got him outside in the clear, he was still making impact at the end, but he just ran out of time getting there.”
The writing team at US Racing is comprised of both full-time and part-time contributors with expertise in various aspects of the Sport of Kings.
