Romans is confident that Dullahan will be the one to stop I’ll Have Another in the Belmont Stakes
Trainer Dale Romans is confident that his three-year-old colt Dullahan’s reputation on dirt will not be a problem when he attempts to spoil I’ll Have Another’s bid to become the 12th horse to win the Triple Crown in the Grade 1, $1 million Belmont
Stakes at Belmont Park on 9 June, 2012.
Dullahan has raced on poly track, grass, and dirt and so far he has been good on all three surfaces.
Donegal Racing’s Dullahan have run on turf thrice, finishing second once in his maiden attempt and once in the Grade 3 Palm Beach Stakes at Gulfstream Park and finishing third in the With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga last year.
The son of Even the Score has been perfect on poly track with 2 wins in as many starts, as he won his career’s first race over the Keeneland’s poly track in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity.
On dirt however, he is yet to win a race, and with two failed attempts at his maiden last year and a fourth place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last fall, Dullahan’s connections should have some concerns, but he cleared all doubts when he
finished 1 ¾ lengths off I’ll Have Another in third in the Kentucky Derby.
Bred in Kentucky, Dullahan hasn’t raced at Belmont Park ever, but Romans is upbeat about his colt’s chances.
"Absolutely not," Romans said without hesitation during a Wednesday teleconference. "I think we owe it to the past Triple Crown winners to make (I'll Have Another) earn it. If he's a super horse, like Seattle Slew, Affirmed, Secretariat, and some of our
past Triple Crown winners, then he'll win it. If not, we'll be able to beat him."
Romans is currently schooling Dullahan to go 1 ½ miles, a distance that he has never tried with his colt, but said he had a little tip from an 80-year-old groom, who also worked for his father.
"He told me, 'Just remember, nature will take a horse a mile and an eighth, but you have teach one to go a mile and a half,'" Romans shared. "We've been changing the small things.
Tags: