by Jerry Burke
Despite the wet forecasts and traffic warnings, 101,864 fans made it out to soggy Belmont Park, the second largest crowd in the race's history, to cheer on the "horse of destiny," Funny Cide.
And for the fifth time in seven years, it just wasn't meant to be.
After taking an early lead and holding it into the final turn, Funny Cide and jockey Jose Santos were simply outclassed by Kentucky Derby favorite Empire Maker and his rider, Jerry Bailey. As Funny Cide faded to a third-place finish, the mood of the once elated crowd changed to match the weather: cold, dark and just plain miserable.
Cheers slowly turned into silence, and then into groans. "Not again!" screamed one poncho-clad reveler as he ripped apart his tickets, vowing to never come to the park again. "Yeah," said the guy next to him. "You said that last year."
Funny Cide came out strong at the gate -- perhaps a little too strong. His bolt to a quick lead allowed Empire Maker to shadow him for the first mile, and Bailey waited until he saw his rival in trouble. "He was pulling on Jose and my horse was relaxed," said Bailey afterward. "As soon as I saw Funny Cide get a little rank and start pulling Jose, I eased back and moved outside. When I turned into the backside, Funny Cide was really rank."
Funny Cide's trainer, Barclay Tagg, did not offer excuses for his horse's performance. "I feel bad for all the people who came out," he said. "We had a good first quarter. We were beaten by a good horse. I don't know what else to say. I'm being honest. It's horse racing."
Santos said the sloppy track, slickened by seven hours of rain proceeding the race, was a factor. "That's not a cheap excuse," the jockey said. "That's the honest truth. He had a great run; I'm not disappointed in this horse at all. I'm proud of him."
Empire Maker's trainer, Bobby Frankel, who last week said that he intended to play the villain, lived up to his boasts. "I didn't think I could get beat, to be totally honest," he said. "It's vindication."
Empire Maker was the heavy favorite in the Kentucky Derby, but finished second to the longshot Funny Cide. It was Frankel's first Triple Crown victory in 11 tries.
Empire Maker completed the mile and a half against the small field of five other horses in 2:28.26. At 2-1 odds, he paid $6 on a $2 bet. He headed a $44 exacta with 9-1 Ten Most Wanted. With the even-money Funny Cide coming in third, the trifecta returned $67.50.
Funny Cide's bid for the Triple Crown also produced the highest overnight TV rating for any horse race since the 1990 Kentucky Derby. The 10.4 rating was also the highest overnight rating for the Belmont Stakes since at least 1987, when Alysheba's attempt at the Triple Crown produced a 9.2 rating.
This year's attendance was bested only by last year's crowd of 103,222, who witnessed Triple Crown hopeful War Emblem finish eighth to 70-1 longshot Sarava. The size of the crowd coupled with the weather made for slow going out of the track, but the Nassau County, New York City and Floral Park police departments combined to make exit streets as accessible as possible.
The curse of the Triple Crown, whose last winner was Affirmed in 1978, remains intact. The 25 years since have seen nine horses come into the Belmont Stakes with a chance of a sweep, but all nine have failed, the closest being a photo-finish loss by Real Quiet to Victory Gallop in 1998. Funny Cide's loss creates the longest gap between Triple Crown winners, previously held by the 25 years in between Citation in 1948 and the great Secretariat in 1973.
So close, yet so far
Since Affirmed won the Belmont in 1978, several horses have come close to winning the Triple Crown but have fallen short. Nine horses have since won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness but failed to take the Belmont Stakes. They're listed below, along with their place in the Belmont, the distance in lengths behind the winner and the winning horse:
2003 -- Funny Cide (3rd, 5, Empire Maker)
2002 -- War Emblem (8th, 19 1/2, Sarava)
1999 -- Charismatic (3rd, 1 1/2, Lemon Drop Kid)
1998 -- Real Quiet (2nd, nose, Victory Gallop)
1997 -- Silver Charm (2nd, 3/4, Touch Gold)
1989 -- Sunday Silence (2nd, 8, Easy Goer)
1987 -- Alysheba (4th, 14 1/4, Bet Twice)
1981 -- Pleasant Colony (3rd, 1 1/2, Summing)
1979 -- Spectacular Bid (3rd, 3 1/4, Coastal)
