For now, Bob Baffert would rather reflect than look forward.
As the smooth-talking trainer basked in the glow of a sixth victory in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on Saturday night, courtesy of the dominant American Pharoah, he did not mention the Triple Crown.
American Pharoah had just handled the atrocious, sloppy conditions in Baltimore with aplomb under Victor Espinoza to run out a seven-length winner of the 140th Preakness when virtually all thoughts of the 131,680 record crowd turned to the Belmont Stakes.
No horse has added the Belmont Stakes to wins in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness since Affirmed in 1978, and where most of America strapped in on Saturday night for three weeks of Triple Crown fever, Baffert did not.
“I don’t even want to think about it right now,” Baffert said. “I want to enjoy this.”
Of his previous trips to Belmont, Baffert said: “It’s tough. I’ve been there and I don’t want to think about it for another couple of weeks.”
His reluctance to dwell on the Belmont Stakes, staged on June 6 at Belmont Park, is partly because of the pain he has suffered trying to win it.
Baffert has taken three horses to Belmont with Triple Crown aspirations and having gone as close as possible the first time, the cherished hat-trick has slipped further and further from his grasp.
Real Quiet was beaten by a nose in 1998, then subsequent Dubai World Cup winner Silver Charm was three-quarters of a length adrift a year later.
War Emblem, also ridden by Espinoza, was stuffed in 2002 after he stumbled out of the gate and nearly fell to his knees.
The Belmont Stakes is run over 2,400 metres, 500 metres farther than the Preakness, on a surface so deep it is known colloquially as the “Big Sandy”.
Few horses have had the natural blend of speed and stamina, mixed in with a healthy dose of luck, to go through all three races in just five weeks.
With his win over outsider Tale Of Verve, American Pharoah became the 35th horse to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown. Only 11 have stretched out to win all three.
Looking at American Pharoah’s breeding, there is a good chance the winner can finally end America’s wait for a horse to go through the three races as his grandsire, Empire Maker, beat five others at Belmont Park in 2003.
The owner, Ahmed Zayat, is certainly a believer.
“I have always told everybody that the real American Pharaoh would show off today,” Zayat said after the race. “He is the real deal. Let’s have another run at it. The sport needs him.”
On the other side of the world, Hong Kong raiders ruled Singapore when Dan Excel successfully defended his crown in the Group 1 International Cup at Kranji, while Aerovelocity secured the Group 1 International Sprint.
Dan Excel became the first horse to win the 2,000m race twice and beat fellow raider Military Attack, who had beaten Dan Excel in 2013 and was third 12 months ago.
Cooptado, formerly with Doug Watson in Dubai, ran 10th of the 11 runners on his first appearance for trainer Patrick Shaw.
There never appeared to be any danger that Aerovelocity would lose as the Hong Kong sprint champion-elect came out of the gate under Zac Purton and was never headed.
Rich Tapestry, who finished third in the Dubai Golden Shaheen in March, came home fifth, while fellow Golden Shaheen graduate Lucky Nine was third just behind Emperor Max. Hototo, who ran six times at Meydan during the winter, was last.
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