Union Rags tracks down Paynter in final stretch to win Belmont Stakes

I'll Have Another's ceremony was muted. Officials had planned to have him lead the Belmont horses onto the track but thought better of it. He walked the paddock, then went to the winners circle. Jockey Mario Gutierrez sat on him for a few seconds. Then trainer Doug O'Neill removed the colt's saddle. They marched off, following the horse. Gutierrez , toward the back of the procession, wept.

A crowd of 85,811 came to the track, the largest ever on a day when a Triple Crown could not be won (it was the sixth largest, period). Tickets purchased before I'll Have Another scratched on Friday were non-refundable, and questions about the what could have been persisted.

“I do really think that this horse, when he has a clean trip and can show himself, is one of the best 3-year-olds in this crop,” Matz said. “Whether he could have done something against I'll Have Another, I don't know, but it sure would have been fun to see.”

Note: Giant Ryan, who collapsed with a broken left ankle in front of the grandstand toward the end of the 7th race, will be taken to the University of Pennsylvania for surgery. While it looked at first like the horse would be put down on the track — attendants spread a large black barrier in front of where the horse stood — he could be saved and sent to stud.

[e-mail]

twitter.com/chriskorman