ELMONT, N.Y. — BELMONT, N.Y. -- Perhaps more than any horse in the field of the Belmont Stakes, it's almost impossible to predict what Dunkirk is going to do Saturday.
When he was purchased for $3.7 million at auction, plenty of people expected big things from Dunkirk, including his trainer, Todd Pletcher. But it has been something of a roller-coaster ride since. The horse almost didn't make the Kentucky Derby field through graded earnings, then did get in and went off as the second choice at 5-1. The horse stumbled out of the gate and then got pinched between Pioneerof the Nile and Papa Clem at the halfway point and finished 19 lengths behind eventual winner Mine That Bird.
Pletcher elected to skip the Preakness and focus on the Belmont, and Dunkirk has managed to fly under the radar a bit this week with all the focus on Mine That Bird and Charitable Man. Dunkirk is the third choice at 4-1.
"I felt going into the Derby this is a very good horse," Pletcher said. "At the beginning of the race out of the gate, he stumbled, and when he did get to the first turn, he got squeezed back and lost position. I felt he never ran to his capabilities. He is training very well. He put on weight going into the Derby. I stand by the fact he's a high-quality horse. This will be his chance to prove it."
Pletcher has had some success at the Belmont in recent years. He won it with filly Rags to Riches in 2007 and finished second (Bluegrass Cat) and third (Sunriver) in 2006.
Taking stock
Mine That Bird jockey Calvin Borel took a trip to the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, where he got to ring the opening bell to kick off a day of trading. The Wall Street traders surprised everyone, especially Borel, by chanting his name after showering him with applause.
"It was awesome, I tell you what," said Borel, who is trying to become the first jockey in history to win three legs of the Triple Crown while riding two different horses. "It's every jockey's dream. It made me feel at home, really."
Borel also taped an appearance for the Late Show with Dave Letterman.
Slots endorsed
It comes as no surprise that a horseman would endorse slot machines as a way to help an ailing industry, which Mine That Bird trainer Chip Woolley did Thursday. But Woolley went so far as to say he would have never even gotten the chance to train Mine That Bird if his home state of New Mexico hadn't adopted slot machines a few years ago.
"I wouldn't be here," Woolley said. "We were on our last legs before slots were passed in New Mexico. The Sutherland Derby is a direct result of slot machines, and we purchased this horse specifically for the Sutherland Derby. ...
"Horse racing is facing some very tough times all around the country. In the next year, you've got a big chance of losing maybe 20 percent or more of racetracks. Hollywood Park, Golden Gate, Churchill Downs - they're all in serious trouble."
