SB Nation Boston - Belmont Stakes 2012: I'll Have Another Pulled From Race, Will Not Go For Triple Crown Victory

Belmont Stakes 2012: Post Positions, Start Time, Video And More

2012-06-09T18:00:13Z

The 2012 Belmont Stakes take place Saturday, and start time, television and online coverage, post positions, and updated odds are all below. With Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another scratched, Dullahan is the new favorite at 9-5. Union Rags and Paynter are close behind.

Approximate Post Time: 6:40pm EDT

Television Coverage: NBC from 4:30-7:00pm EDT.

Streaming Online: Streaming coverage via NBC Sports from 4:30-7:00pm EDT

Post Positions:

1. Street Life 8-1

2. Unstoppable U 20-1

3. Union Rags 3-1

4. Atigun 15-1

5. Dullahan 9-5

6. Ravelo's Boy 30-1

7. Five Sixteen 30-1

8. Guyana Star Dweej 30-1

9. Paynter 7-2

10. Optimizer 15-1

12. My Adonis 15-1

SB Nation Boston will have news, updates, and results from the 2012 Belmont Stakes. For full time horse racing news and analysis, head over to And Down The Stretch They Come. And don't miss SB Nation on YouTube:

Belmont Stakes 2012 Odds: Dullahan New Favorite After I'll Have Another Scratched

2012-06-09T14:34:40Z

With I'll Have Another abruptly retiring from racing due to tendinitis, Dullahan became the favorite at the 2012 Belmont Stakes.

The race lost some of its luster with the scratching of I'll Have Another, which would have been attempting to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978. But Dullahan (9-5 odds as of 10:30 a.m. ET) and Union Rags (3-1) lead a field that's still strong.

Complete odds for the 2012 Belmont Stakes follow:

1. Street Life 8-1

2. Unstoppable U 20-1

3. Union Rags 3-1

4. Atigun 15-1

5. Dullahan 9-5

6. Ravelo's Boy 30-1

7. Five Sixteen 30-1

8. Guyana Star Dweej 30-1

9. Paynter 7-2

10. Optimizer 15-1

11. I'll Have Another (scratched)

12. My Adonis 15-1

Stick with this storystream for updates, odds, and more from the 2012 Belmont Stakes. All your horse racing news and analysis needs can be met at SB Nation's horse racing blog And Down The Stretch They Come. And don't miss the SB Nation Studios 2012 Belmont Stakes Preview:

I'll Have Another Retired With Tendinitis: 2012 Belmont Stakes Loses Triple Crown Hopeful

2012-06-08T17:54:42Z

I'll Have Another was retired on Friday after doctors found the beginning stages of tendinitis in the front leg, trainer Doug O'Neill said during a press conference on Friday.

Already the Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner, I'll Have Another was supposed to contend for a triple crown at Saturday's 2012 Belmont Stakes. Instead, the horse will never race again.

"This is extremely tough for all of us. Though it's far from tragic, no one died or anything like that, it's extremely disappointing. I feel so sorry for the whole team. We've had such an amazing run," said O'Neill.

Though I'll Have Another still could have raced at the Belmont and is expected to be fine after a three-to-six month recovery period, his team decided to use caution in deference to the horse's safety.

I'll Have Another Scratched From Belmont Stakes, Says Trainer Doug O'Neill

2012-06-08T16:14:07Z

There will be no quest for history Saturday during the 2012 Belmont Stakes.

Triple Crown hopeful I'll Have Another pulled out of the race reportedly due to an undisclosed issue, as trainer Doug O'Neill told the Dan Patrick Show on Friday.

Doug O'Neill: "I'll Have Another is officially out of the Belmont."
— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) June 8, 2012

A press conference has been scheduled for 1 p.m. to divulge more information on I'll Have Another, which might have unknowingly run its final race in the Preakness.

O'Neill said that having to withdraw from the race was "a bummer," but "far from tragic."

Media Roundup: NBC Hopes For Triple Crown In Belmont Stakes

2012-06-08T12:00:34Z

In 1978 when Affirmed won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes, it marked the second consecutive year that there was a Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing winner, and the third time in five years.

At the time, no one could possibly know that there would not be another Triple Crown winner for the next 33 years.

On Saturday, I'll Have Another has the chance to end that streak and become the first horse to take home the honor since Affirmed. There have been close calls over the years - Real Quiet in 1998, War Emblem in 2002 and Smarty Jones in 2004 spring to mind - but no horse has been able to finish up the last leg and take the crown home.

The coverage begins at 4:30 p.m. ET on Saturday on NBC, and is preceded by 1.5 hours of coverage on NBC Sports Network, and followed by a 30-minute post-race show on the channel. Those covering the race for the network include (among others) co-hosts Bob Costas and Tom Hammond, analyst Randy Moss, handicapper Bob Neumeier, and and race caller Larry Collmus - the long-time (1992-2008) track announcer at Suffolk Downs.

The broadcast will be led by producer Rob Hyland, who gives us a look at the technical side of the broadcast: “We will have 38 cameras on this show. We’ve added three cameras and a bunch of drop locations so you’ll have new imagery pop up at this year’s Belmont. We have two super slo-mo cameras, one X-Mo camera, a blimp for aerial coverage. In total, about 200 members of the production and engineering crew that will cover this year’s Belmont.”

Veteran broadcaster Hammond was working as a sales announcer for various thoroughbred sales, as well as sports director for a Kentucky TV station. He was at the 1978 Belmont that saw Affirmed capture the last Triple Crown. He says “I happened to be standing three feet from Chic Anderson, the caller for at Belmont Park and on CBS that day. And it was one of the most thrilling moments that I’ve seen in horse racing.” He adds that “An event like this is why we became sportscasters in the first place, a chance to be a part of history, to interpret it, to put it in context, to help reviewers enjoy all that’s going on.”

Moss, who you may have seen on ESPN and the NFL Network covering the NFL, is also a veteran of the Triple Crown. He also jokes about being responsible for there not being a winner since 1978: “I’m on my 33^rd year now covering the Triple Crown and I have yet to see a Triple Crown winner. I’m beginning to think it’s me.”

We've become accustomed to announcers launching into planed exclamations (Think Joe Castiglione and "Can you believe it!") or longer soliloquies (Think Jack Edwards after Big Bruins wins, or Sean Grande after Celtics won the championship in '08.) after calling a huge game. Does Collmus have something planned if I'll Have Another can pull off the win? “You have to be prepared for something like that and to have it in your head what you would want to say when a moment like this happens." He says. "So, yes, there’s definitely something in my mind that hopefully, if the horse wins, will come out the way I would like it to come out.”

NBC will also integrate social media in their coverage, including tweets from I'll Have Another himself. Viewers and Tweeters alike will be encouraged to join the conversation by using the hashtag #BELMONT. Reminders will appear on screen throughout all of NBC’s Belmont Stakes coverage.

History could be made on Saturday. Will you be watching?

Belmont Stakes 2012: Underdogs Confident About Upset Bid

2012-06-07T15:35:46Z

Upsets tend to be a regular feature in the Belmont Stakes. More than a few Triple Crown hopefuls have seen their efforts derailed at the New York track since Affirmed became the last horse to pull off one of the most prized feats in all of professional sports. Odds currently favor I'll Have Another to be the 12th Triple Crown winner, but there are a number of challengers waiting in the wings.

My Adonis, the latest horse to join the field, is currently at 20-1, but owners George and Lori Hall and trainer Kelly Breen have some experience with upsets in the Belmont Stakes. Their horse Ruler On Ice won last year's race at 24-1.

Odds give Dullahan the likeliest chance of any horse in the field of 12 to upset. Owner Jerry Crawford and trainer Dale Romans expressed confidence in their horse's ability to spoil the 12th Triple Crown bid since 1978. "I'll be surprised if we don't win," said Romans.

2012 Belmont Stakes Post Positions, Morning Line Odds: I'll Have Another The Favorite

2012-06-06T17:31:43Z

The post positions and morning line odds for the 2012 Belmont Stakes were released on Wednesday. Predictably, Triple Crown hopeful I'll Have Another is the favorite at 4-5 odds. The Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner will start from the 11th post position.

Dullahan, which came in third in the Derby, is the second favorite at 5-1 odds. Union Rags follows shortly behind at 6-1.

The complete 2012 Belmont Stakes post positions and morning line odds follow:

1 - Street Life, 12-1
2 - Unstoppable U, 30-1
3 - Union Rags, 6-1
4 - Atigun, 30-1
5 - Dullahan, 5-1
6 - Ravelo's Boy, 50-1
7 - Five Sixteen, 50-1
8 - Guyana Star Dweej, 50-1
9 - Paynter, 8-1
10 - Optimizer, 20-1
11 - I'll Have Another, 4-5
12 - My Adonis, 20-1

Belmont Stakes 2012: Alpha Drops Out Of Race, I'll Have Another Still Favored To Win Triple Crown

2012-06-02T01:14:04Z

I'll Have Another will face one fewer opponent in his bid for the Triple Crown, as Daily Racing Form reports that Alpha has dropped out of the race. The horse developed a fever, and trainer Kiaran McLaughlin explained the reason for pulling the horse from the race:

“It’s just not the thing to do,” said McLaughlin, who discussed the situation with Godolphin Racing manager Simon Crisford. “It’s a demanding race, the mile and a half. We need to be 110 percent and we’re not.”

McLaughlin said future plans for Alpha were not yet determined.

Alpha joins Creative Cause and Bodemeister in skipping the 2012 Belmont Stakes. Before dropping out the odds on an Alpha victory were 15/1, so the lineup of major contenders is unchanged. I'll Have Another is still the favorite, with Union Rags close behind.