[King Glorious]

I think that it needs to be remembered that most of the things we think of on this forum are coming from the perspective of the racing fan and not just the casual fan. We are gamblers, trainers, hotwalkers, analysts, journalists, etc., on here that have much more than a passing interest. The majority of the people that tune in/attend the Derby and that would have been at Belmont could probably be safely called "momentary" fans. To them, things are much different. While some will read the comments that they are doing what's best for the horse by not running him and hearing how they are saddened by him not being able to run but happy that he's being retired sound and healthy, others will read it different. For example, I had a friend text me this morning and say "good thing Derrick Rose is not a horse. They would have retired him already. If Michael Jordan or Tom Brady were horses, they would have been retired after their season ending injuries." I could be wrong but I think that when the general public reads statements like:

-he's sound and healthy
-he could race tomorrow but why risk it?
-it's mild tendinitis
-he could return in 3-6 months
-it's comparable to an ankle sprain in a human

I don't think these things necessarily help our cause. Especially on the backs of all of the coverage of O'Neill and his drug suspensions. You have to admit that with his history and then with them putting in the detention barn for extra scrutiny and then he pulls out of the race, it can look at least a little suspicious if you are an outsider and don't know how things really work. I personally don't see how any good comes from this.