Union Rags initiated his Belmont Stakes work tab
There are a few question marks posing on Union Rags’ 3-year-old campaign that the colt has not lived up to the hype he created by winning three races in a row out of four in his juvenile campaign, with a second place finish to Hansen in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last fall at Churchill Downs.
There are a few has gone far enough to say that the Chadds Ford Stable’s Union Rags is overrated, and he is not bred to go a mile and a half – which is the distance of the Grade 1, $1 million Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park on 9 June, 2012.
It is time for Union Rags to run a big one, and put these statements – if any of these statements or all have them are true – to bed by spoiling I’ll Have Another’s bid to become the first horse to win the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978.
Still stationed at Fair Hill Trainer Center, Union Rags worked ahead of the Belmont Stakes, and turned in five furlongs in 1 minute and 1 second on 24 May, 2012.
"He looks well and went really nice,” trainer Michael Matz said. “We’re looking forward to running him in the Belmont, and hopefully, he’ll get a clean trip this time and have a chance to show what he can do.
“You cannot believe the texts and Twitter Peter (assistant Peter Brette) has been getting. One guy said he was the groom of Damascus and told him we should run in the Met Mile (gr. I) and wheel him back in the Belmont.”
Michael Matz trained 3-year-old colt, has only won once as a 3-year-old in the Grade 2 Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park.
However, the Dixie Union colt chocked under pressure when called out to run in the Grade 1 Florida Derby and the May 5 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby.
Out of mare Tempo by Gone West, Union Rags came out of the Kentucky Derby a little knocked out with some cuts and bruises, but he will be okay, and Velazquez will work on the colt once he comes to Fair Hill Training Centre.
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