Tom Chuckas on Preakness/TC Spacing

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

Who said anything about spreading the TC out 3-4 months? They are only talking about adding one more week between races. Instead of 2 weeks between the Derby and Preakness, it would be 3 weeks. I don't know if they would add an extra week between the Preakness and Belmont.

you might want to re-read the article. he wants the preakness moved to the first wknd in june, and the belmont to the first wknd in july.


i can see his point, to a point. pimlico doesn't get the carryover of horses moving on to md, and he thinks it's due to the spacing.
then again, it might be due to the racing and purses offered. i don't know that moving preakness day would suddenly induce horsemen to run on the undercard because you have to have a good undercard. it has to be worth their while to ship there.
also, how many horses who skip the preakness go to the belmont? i'm sure many skip both of the other jewels, and take a break before going elsewhere, or dropping to some of the lower level races.