Bet on the Triple Crown – Ice Box as Belmont Menace
Saturday, June 05, 2010
by BetUS.com
Horse racing bettors are well aware that Ice Box, which came second in the Kentucky Derby, can be a menacing presence in the Belmont Stakes, which is being run on Saturday at Belmont Park in New York. When you've got a horse who can close the gap in a hurry down the stretch, like he can, that's always going to be dangerous at a distance that is more than any of these competitors have ever run before.
Indeed, Ice Box gets respect, as reflected in his odds of +300 to win on Saturday. He is indeed the betting favorite, and will break from the #6 spot at the gate, right in the middle of the track.
Belmont Stakes
Saturday, June 5 - 6:32 PM ET
Belmont Park, Elmont, NY
Betting Odds to Win
(With post positions reflected)
| 1 | Dave in Dixie | +2000 |
| 2 | Spangled Star | +3000 |
| 3 | Uptowncharlybrown | +1000 |
| 4 | Make Music for Me | +900 |
| 5 | Fly Down | +450 |
| 6 | Ice Box | +300 |
| 7 | Drosselmeyer | +1200 |
| 8 | Game On Dude | +900 |
| 9 | Stately Victor | +1400 |
| 10 | Stay Put | +2000 |
| 11 | First Dude | +350 |
| 12 | Interactif | +1200 |
Ice Box is the runner a lot of these Belmont horses are afraid of; that is, he is never going to be out of the race and closes like a monster. This this three-year-old son of Pulpit took a while to get out of the gate, so to speak, in his racing career.
The debut happened last August at Saratoga, and over six furlongs, he was beaten easily by Aikenite and others, and never got closer than ten lengths in the stretch. That seventh-place finish was followed by a fifth-place finish at seven furlongs, then a fourth place (losing to Rule) at a mile before finally breaking maiden in his two-year-old finale last October at the Meadowlands, paying off as the betting favorite. Still, Ice Box's Beyer ratings were in the 50s and 60s.
An impressive showing over a mile and an eighth in an allowance at Gulfstream, in which he beat Pleasant Price, gave some indications that this horse, whose grandsire is former Belmont winner A.P. Indy and whose broodmare sire, Tabasco Cat, also won the Belmont, could get the longer distances.
He did not get a chance to prove that in the Fountain of Youth Stakes, where as a 45-1 betting choice, he did not get off to a good start and never really fired, beaten by the outstanding Eskandereya, the Derby favorite before scratching with an injury.
The next two races have been a revelation. In the Florida Derby, Ice Box went off at 21-1 betting odds and was not heavily considered, until going wide on the last turn and making up lots of ground quickly, finally nailing it in the final strides to beat out Pleasant Prince. Still, bettors did not seem to be enamored with the idea of moving with the Nick Zito horse in the Kentucky Derby, sending him out at 11-1.
From a spot that was literally at the back of the pack on the backstretch, and blocked a couple of times, Ice Box started to fly down the stretch, passing horses on the far outside, and overtook Paddy O'Prado to finish second, two and a half lengths behind Super Saver. It was this race that has given Horse bettors a lot of faith that Ice Box, which looked like it could run all day, could easily handle the distance for the "Test of a Champion."
Zito kept the horse out of the Preakness to concentrate on the mile and a half at the Belmont. First Dude (+350 in the betting odds for the Belmont) may have the highest Beyer speed figure in this field (101), but Ice Box has a 100 and a 99, and they came in those last two races. with an average of 93.5 over his last four.
Related Articles
- 2010 Belmont Stakes: One of History's Slowest
- Belmont Stakes Money Back Special
- Belmont Betting – Borel on the Rail
- Horse Racing Odds for Labor Day Weekend: Saratoga and Del Mar
- 2011 Travers Stakes Results: Stay Thirsty Win at Saratoga
