Years ago, (in 1978), I liked Alydar over Affirmed. Affirmed was a very nice looking, powerful race horse. Alydar pushed Affirmed across the finish line in the Kentucky Derby, The Preakness Stakes, and The Belmont Stakes, and The Travers,,,,,,,,however, in the Travers, the Stewarts ruled Alydar was interferred with by Affirmed, and Affirmed was DQ'd.
Alydar, might not of been able to finish ahead of Affirmed when competing head to head, but Alydar had heart and determination and he passed that quality on to his offspring.
I have the same thinking with Mucho Macho Man that I had with Alydar.
If Mucho Macho Man enters and does not win the Belmont Stakes, it is not going to be a big deal...just to see him race with heart and determination and come out of the race healthy is what I am looking towards. True he does not have it all figured out yet, but he just turned 3 yrs old this coming Month (June).
Lately, the horses that compete in these early 3 year old Stakes races have nothing left in the FALL campaign.,,,I think Mucho Macho Man WILL be racing in the FALL Stakes races.
Officials at Arlington Park said leading jockey Junior Alvarado was taken to a suburban Chicago hospital after breaking his collar bone during a May 27 race.
In a news release, the track said that Alvarado’s horse, Monkey’s Moonbeam, fell approaching the top of the stretch in the fourth race and threw Alvarado to the track. Track officials say Alvarado was conscious and walked to the ambulance by himself. He was taken to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights.
His agent, Jay Fedor, confirmed that Alvarado broke his collar bone.
Alvarado had 19 wins from 79 mounts and was the track’s top rider entering racing on May 27.
Jockey Julien Couton sustained compression fractures to his thoracic vertebrae in a spill at Golden Gate Fields May 27 and will be sidelined for several weeks, track physician Dr. David Seftel reported the following morning. Initial reports had Couton escaping the accident with only bruising to his back but further evaluation at Highland Hospital in Oakland revealed the broken seventh and eighth vertebrae. “A reread of his CAT scan revealed the fractures,” said Seftel May 28. “There is no evidence of any spinal cord impairment or anything of that nature. He spent a quiet night in the intensive care unit for observation and will likely stay at Highland for another day or so for monitoring. He’ll then be fitted with a (back) brace and begin his rehabilitation. He will not be riding for eight to 12 weeks.” Couton hit the ground hard in the six-furlong fifth race when his mount, Nassau Gold, slowed on the far turn, fell, and died. A necropsy will be performed on Nassau Gold to determine what caused the 5-year-old gelding to fall.
Apprentice rider Irad Ortiz Jr. suffered a possible head injury after being thrown from his mount, Freud's Debut, in the ninth race at Belmont Park May 28. The jockey was taken to North Shore University Hospital. In the race, a 1 1/16-mile maiden claimer on the Widener turf course, Freud’s Debut stumbled and fell shortly after the start of the race, unseating his rider. Ortiz needed to be taken off the course on a stretcher by emergency technicians, but was reported to be conscious and in stable condition. The jockey's spill came the day after Ramon Dominguez was involved in an accident on the turf at Belmont. Dominguez took off his nine mounts May 28 due to stiffness in his neck. Ortiz, Jr., 18, won 75 races in his native Puerto Rico this year before coming to ride at Belmont Park, where he has two wins since the meet began in late April. Freud’s Debut, a 3-year-old son of Freud trained by Mark Hennig, appeared uninjured in the spill.
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