Belmont Match On for Orb, Oxbow

By Staff Report June 2, 2013

Team Orb has declared “game on!” The Kentucky Derby winner will take on Preakness winner Oxbow in the Belmont Stakes on Saturday. Orb trainer Shug McGaughey said barring any unforeseen setbacks.

Following a lackluster performance that led to a fourth place finish in the Preakness, McGaughey had said he would ship the colt to Belmont to train but was taking a wait and see approach to entering the third leg of the Triple Crown.

Orb had to overcome the highly undesirable No. 1 post position in the Preakness. Starting positions are randomly assigned prior to the race, and this was a bit of back luck for a horse many thought would be the first Triple Crown winner in 35 years.

Preakness winner Oxbow – hailed as the comeback of racing’s legendary Calumet Farm – travels this week to the Belmont Park track in Long Island, NY. Orb is owned by the prestigious Phipps Stable and Maryland-based attorney Stuart Janney III.

The AP reports this will be the 21^st rematch between a Derby and Preakness winner in Belmont history, with the Preakness winner coming out on top nine times, and the Derby winner five times.

The Belmont Stakes is the oldest Triple Crown contest, preceding the Kentucky Derby by six years and the Preakness by seven.

The 145^th Belmont Stakes takes place June 15. NBC will telecast the event live from 5-7 p.m. ET. A tantalizing $600,000 of the $1 million purse goes to the winner of the 1½ mile race.

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