Closers getting a setup in the Belmont

[Calzone Lord]

A horse like Dullahan especially will need a 47 and change pace.

Here is how the top finishing closers have performed in the Belmont since the archived charts from 1991 when they've had 48.00 or faster paces to work with.

2009: 47.13 half mile (Mine That Bird was dead last early 11 lengths behind -- he finished 3rd and never finished better than 3rd in his next 7 starts)

2006: 47.36 half mile (Eventual winner Jazil was dead last of 12 horses early on and a dozen lengths back. He never won another race, including two defeats at the ALW level)

2001: 48.00 half mile (Dollar Bill was dead last early. He finished 4th. He was only 1-for-11 afterwards -- that lone win was a neck ALW win at Fairgrounds as an odds-on favorite)

1999: 47.60 half mile (Best of Luck closed from 11th -- more than 14 lengths out of it -- to finish 4th. He was off the board in the Jim Dandy at 3/1 next out and 1-for-11 with 3 alw defeats afterwards)

1996: 46.80 half mile (Editor's Note was 12th beaten 11.5 lengths and ran down leader Skip Away in the stretch to win a fast paced Belmont Stakes. He was off the board in both the Jim Dandy and Travers -- and was 2-for-14 the rest of his career with one win coming at the ALW level)

1994: 47.40 half mile (Signal Tap closed from last to finish 4th. He was beaten in all of his next six starts. Five of them at the ALW level -- and the lone stakes try a 7th place finish in the Pennsylvania Derby as the second choice in the betting)

1992: 47.00 half mile (The horse who was last after a half mile lost all of his next 10 races -- all at the ALW level...but he also ran poorly in the Belmont. Meanwhile, European My Memories closed strongest and gained 3 lengths on winner A. P. Indy to finish a close 2nd at the wire. He was a badly beaten favorite in the Jim Dandy next out and never better than 6th in all five starts afterwards)

1991: 46.60 half mile (the favorite Strike The Gold rallied from dead last to finish 2nd by a head. He was defeated in all of his next 10 starts.