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Belmont Stakes Trivia
NEW YORK (AP) -- Trivia for the 131st Belmont Stakes as provided by NTRA Communications:SCORES: The highest-priced winner was Sherluck, who defeated the 1-2 favorite Carry Back in 1961, paying $132.10. The shortest-priced winner was Count Fleet in 1943, who paid $2.10. There have been 16 horses sent off at odds of 100-1 or better since 1905, when betting records started. The longest-priced horse was Adobe Ed, who went off at 245.80-1 in 1971. He finished 12th in a 13-horse field. Two 100-1 shots finished in the top three, Bull Dandy (118-1) in 1944 and Wonderful (100-1) in 1917. Bul l Dandy paid $19.30 to show; you couldn't cash a ticket on Wonderful, his was a three-horse race.
SELECTIONS: Betting favorites have won 46 percent of the time (53 for the 114 races where odds have been recorded). Odds-on favorites have won 40 percent (12 for 30). In 1957, both winner Gallant Man (19-20) and third-place finisher Bold Ruler (1 7-20) were odds-on.
SENIORITY: The Belmont, first run in 1867, is the oldest of the Triple Crown events, predating the Preakness by six years and the Kentucky Derby by eight. It is the fourth oldest stakes race run in North America -- only the Queen's Plate (1860), Travers (1864) and Jerome (1866) are older.
SEX: There have been 19 fillies to run in the Belmont Stakes with two winners. Ruthless won the first Belmont in 1867 and Tanya took the 1905 running.
SHADE: There have been 50 bay, 48 chestnut, 26 dark bay or brown, four gray or roan and two black Belmont Stakes winners.
SHOWSTOPPERS & SQUEAKERS: The widest margin of victory was Secretariat's 31-length win in 1973. The smallest margins were the nose victories of Granville (1936), Jaipur (1962) and Victory Gallop (1998).
SIRES: Eleven Belmont Stakes winners have sired Belmont Stakes winners: Man o' War (1920) sired American Flag (1925), Crusader (1926) and War Admiral (1937); Commando (1901) sired Peter Pan (1907) and Colin (1908); Gallant Fox (1930) sired Omaha (1935) and Granville (1936). Count Fleet (1943) sired Counterpoint (1951) and One Count (1952); Seattle Slew (1977) sired Swale (1984) and A.P. Indy (1992); Duke of Magenta (1878) sired Eric (1889); Spendthrift (1879) sired Hastings (1896); Hastings (1896 ) sired Masterman (1902); The Finn (1915) sired Zev (1923); Sword Dancer (1959) sired Damascus (1967); and Secretariat (1973) sired Risen Star (1988).
SITES: The Belmont Stakes has been run at four different New York race tracks. It was inaugurated in 1867 at Jerome Park, moved to Morris Park in 1890, to Belmont Park in 1905, to Aqueduct Race Track in 1963 while Belmont was being rebuilt, and back to Belmont again for its 100th running in 1968. Belmont Park covers 430 acres in two counties, Nassau and Queens. It can hold up to 90,000 people and has parking for 18,500 cars. Total seating capacity is 32,491.
SIZE: The largest field to start was 15 in 1983, the smallest was two in 1887, 1888, 1892, 1910 and 1920.
SLOP: There have been 33 off-tracks, the last occurring in 1986 when Danzig Connection triumphed on a track labeled sloppy.
SPEED: The fastest first quarter mile in the Belmont was 23 seconds by Another Review in 1991. The fastest first 1-2 mile (:46 1-5), 3/4 mile (1:09 4-5), mile (1:34 1-5), 1 1-4 miles (1:59) as well as the final 1 1-2 miles were all set by Secretariat in 1973 during his 31-length triumph in a world-record 2:24.
SPELLING: The most popular first letter of a Belmont winner is C with 19 champions, the last being Colonial Affair in 1993. There have been 16 victories by horses with names starting with an S and 10 with a P. There have been no winners whose names started with a U, X or Y. A-9, B-9, C-19, D-4, E-3, F-4, G-8, H-10, I-2, J-6, K-1, L-2, M-4, N-3, O-3, P-10, Q-1, R-3, S-17, T-7, U-0, V-2, W-2, X-0, Y-0, Z-1
START: Post position one, with 22, has produced the most Belmont champions since 1905. 1-22, 2-11, 3-12, 4-8, 5-13, 6-6, 7-11, 8-5, 9-1, 10-2, 11-1
STEPHENS: Woody Stephens has trained the winners of five Belmont Stakes, all consecutive, winning from 1982-1986 with Conquistador Cielo, Caveat, Swale, Creme Fraiche and Danzig Connection. James Rowe has saddled the most Belmont winners, eight, while Sam Hildreth had seven and 'Sunny' Jim Fitzsimmons six.
STOPPED: The Belmont has halted 14 potential Triple Crown winners after their triumphs in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness: Pensive (1944), Tim Tam (1958), Carry Back (1961), Northern Dancer (1964), Kauai King (1966), Forward Pass (1968), Majestic Prince (1969), Canonero II (1971), Spectacular Bid (1979), Pleasant Colony (1981), Alysheba (1987), Sunday Silence (1989), Silver Charm (1997) and Real Quiet (1998).
STRUTTING: The first post parade in the United States came in the 1880 Belmont. Before that the horses went directly from the paddock to the post.
SWARM: The largest crowd ever for the Belmont was the 82,694 who turned out to watch the unsuccessful Triple Crown bid of Canonero II in 1971.
SWEEPS: Eleven horses have won the Derby and Belmont. Zev (1923), Twenty Grand (1931), Johnstown (1939), Shut Out (1942), Middleground (1950), Needles (1956), Chateaugay (1963), Riva Ridge (1972), Bold Forbes (1976), Swale (1984) and Thunder Gulch (1995). Nine horses have won the Preakness and Belmont. Bimelech (1940), Capot (1949), Native Dancer (1953), Nashua (1955), Damascus (1967), Little Current (1974), Risen Star (1988), Hansel (1991) and Tabasco Cat (1994). Seven horses have won the Preakn ess and Belmont without having run in the Derby.
DATES IN BELMONT HISTORY
May 30, 1908 -- Jockey Joe Notter misjudged the finish of the Belmont Stakes and eased up on his mount, Colin, whose career record to that point was 13-for-13. Notter barely recovered from his mistake to hold off the drive of Fair Play, who came within a head of defeating Colin. When he retired, Colin's record stood at 15 wins in as many starts.
June 1, 1946 -- Assault became the seventh horse to win the Triple Crown, with a victory in the Belmont Stakes.
June 4, 1870 -- Ed Brown became the first African-American jockey to win the Belmont Stakes, with Kingfisher.
June 4, 1941 -- Three days before his race in the Belmont Stakes, which would complete his Triple Crown, Whirlaway worked 1 1-4 miles in 2:02 2-5.
June 5, 1884 -- James McLaughlin became the first jockey to ride three consecutive Belmont Stakes winners, when he rode Panique to victory. He previously won with George Kinney (1883) and Forester (1882). McLaughlin repeated his feat in 1886-88, with each of his wins aboard horses owned by the Dwyer brothers. McLaughlin's triple was matched by jockey Laffit Pincay Jr. in 1984.
June 5, 1937 -- War Admiral became the fourth winner of the Triple Crown, with a win in the Belmont Stakes.
June 5, 1943 -- Count Fleet ended his racing career by winning the Belmont Stakes by 25 lengths. He was the sixth American Triple Crown winner. Count Fleet was such a heavy favorite for the race, going off at odds of 1-20, that no place or show wagering was allowed.
June 5, 1993 -- Julie Krone became the first female rider to win a Triple Crown race when she won the Belmont Stakes with Colonial Affair.
June 6, 1987 -- Bet Twice became the first horse to receive a Triple Crown bonus after winning the Belmont Stakes over rival Alysheba. He earned $1 million in addition to the first-place money.
June 7, 1930 -- Gallant Fox became the second winner of the Triple Crown after he won the Belmont Stakes under Earl Sande. Gallant Fox subsequently sired another Triple Crown winner, Omaha.
June 7, 1941 -- Whirlaway won the 73rd running of the Belmont Stakes and became the fifth horse to win the Triple Crown.
June 7, 1980 -- Genuine Risk became the first filly to compete in all three Triple Crown races. She won the Kentucky Derby and finished second in both the Preakness and Belmont Stakes.
June 7, 1986 -- Trainer Woody Stephens saddled Danzig Connection to win his fifth consecutive Belmont Stakes. Stephens won the previous races with Conquistador Cielo (1982), Caveat (1983), Swale (1984) and Creme Fraiche (1985).
June 8, 1935 -- Omaha, son of Triple Crown winner Gallant Fox, became the third winner of the Triple Crown with a win in the Belmont Stakes.
June 8, 1985 -- Brushwood Stable's Creme Fraiche became the first gelding to win the Belmont Stakes.
June 8, 1991 -- Julie Krone became the first female rider to compete in the Belmont Stakes. Her mount, Subordinated Debt, finished ninth as the third-longest shot in the field. Also on that date, Mane Minister became the only horse to finish third in all three Triple Crown events.
June 9, 1888 -- James McLaughlin set the record for most number of wins by a jockey in the Belmont Stakes, six, when he rode Sir Dixon to a 12-length victory. McLaughlin's record was matched by Eddie Arcaro in 1955.
June 9, 1887 -- Only two horses competed in the Belmont Stakes. It was the smallest field in the race's history, which again had only two starters in 1888, 1892, 1910, and 1920, the year Man o' War won the Belmont by 20 lengths.
June 9, 1973 -- Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths-the longest winning margin in the race's history-while setting a track record of 2:24, which has not been surpassed. The time was 2 3-5 seconds faster than the mark set by Gallant Man
in 1957. Secretariat's victory made him the ninth Triple Crown winner and first since Citation had swept the Derby, Preakness and Belmont in 1948.
June 9,1979 -- Spectacular Bid lost his chance for the Triple Crown in the Belmont Stakes, finishing third to winner Coastal. Trainer Bud Delp alleged that the colt had sustained a foot injury after stepping on a safety pin the morning of the race.
June 9, 1984 -- Riding Swale in a wire-to-wire victory, Laffit Pincay Jr. won his third consecutive Belmont Stakes, becoming the only rider in this century to accomplish that feat. Pincay rode Caveat to victory in 1983 and Conquistador Cielo in 198 2; all three of his mounts were trained by Woody Stephens. Jockey James McLaughlin also rode three consecutive Belmont winners, once from 1882-84, and again from 1886-88. Swale's Belmont was also the first in which a female trainer saddled a horse for the race. Sarah Lundy sent Minstrel Star to a last-place finish.
June 10, 1978 -- Steve Cauthen, at age 18, became the youngest jockey ever to win the Triple Crown when his mount, Affirmed, won the Belmont Stakes. Also on that day, Alydar became the only horse to finish second in all three Triple Crown races. Affirmed was the 11th winner of the Triple Crown.
June 11, 1919 -- The first Triple Crown was won by Sir Barton after he completed the Belmont Stakes, then run at 1 3-8 miles rather than the traditional 1 1-2 miles. Prior to his Triple Crown sweep, Sir Barton had been winless in six tries at racing.
June 11, 1921 -- Grey Lag, under Earl Sande, won the first Belmont Stakes ever to be run counter-clockwise. Previous Belmonts had been run clockwise over a fish-hook course that included part of the training track and the main dirt oval.
June 11, 1955 -- Jockey Eddie Arcaro tied James McLaughlin's record of six Belmont Stakes wins when he rode Nashua to victory.
June 11, 1973 -- Triple Crown winner Secretariat simultaneously made the covers of Time, Newsweek and Sports Illustrated.
June 11, 1977 -- Upon winning the Belmont Stakes, Seattle Slew became the tenth Triple Crown winner and the first Triple Crown winner to remain undefeated, with a career record of nine-for-nine.
June 12, 1920 -- Man o' War won the Belmont Stakes, which was then run at a distance of 1 3-8 miles, in 2:14 1-5. He shattered the existing world record by 3 1-5 seconds and also set the American dirt-course record for that distance.
June 12, 1926 -- The August Belmont family first presented their permanent commemorative Tiffany trophy to the winner of the Belmont Stakes. The silver trophy was created in 1869 in recognition of Fenian's win in the Belmont.
June 12, 1948 -- After riding Citation to victory in the Belmont, jockey Eddie Arcaro became the only rider in history to have won two Triple Crowns. His previous Triple Crown was with Whirlaway, in 1941. In wining the Belmont, Citation became the eighth Triple Crown winner.
June 13, 1874 -- English-bred Saxon became the first foreign bred horse to win the Belmont Stakes.
June 13, 1913 -- James Rowe, who had won back-to-back Belmonts in 1872-3 as a jockey, set the record for most number of Belmont Stakes wins by a trainer, eight, when he sent Prince Eugene to victory.
June 19, 1867 -- The inaugural Belmont Stakes was run at Jerome Park in the Bronx and was won by a filly, Ruthless, who defeated colts to earn $1,850 for her victory. Ruthless was one of a group of fillies known as the "Barbarous Battalion," daughters of the mare Barbarity, owned by Francis Morris of New York. The other "battalion" members-all full sisters-were Remorseless, Relentless, Regardless and Merciless.