by Joe Nevills

Dual classic winner Smarty Jones’s failed bid for the Triple Crown in the 2004 Belmont Stakes (G1) was the most watched event on television for that week with an 11.3 television rating.

With Triple Crown hopeful Big Brown entered in Saturday’s Belmont Stakes, Len DeLuca, senior vice president of programming and acquisitions for ESPN, hopes as many viewers tune in for a chance to witness history. 

“It’s a Triple Crown race,” DeLuca said. “We’d love to triple what we’ve had the last couple of years. It’s our third year with the Belmont on ABC in this run, and the last couple of years, we’ve done in the threes.”

The 2004 Belmont Stakes posted easily the highest television rating of any Triple Crown race during the previous five years and drew a Belmont Park record crowd of 120,139. Undefeated Big Brown could have a similar impact this year as he attempts to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978.

Coverage of the Belmont undercard begins Saturday at noon EDT on ESPN, and coverage moves to ABC at 5 p.m. for the Belmont Stakes telecast.

Big Brown’s recent hoof troubles were the main focus of discussion during Tuesday’s Belmont on ABC and ESPN conference call, which featured DeLuca, racing analysts Jerry Bailey and Randy Moss, and ESPN Vice President of Production Michael McQuade. 

“My first thought, to be honest with you, was a lack of surprise,” Moss said of the quarter crack the Boundary colt developed after his Preakness Stakes (G1) victory. “We’ve known since way back before the Florida Derby (G1) that Big Brown has had some extremely problematic feet. This is not something that has just popped up.”

“I was almost kind of relieved that it happened when it did last week,” said Bailey, a retired Racing Hall of Fame jockey. “Had what happened last week happened today, I would have been far less optimistic.”

Moss does not think the quarter crack in Big Brown’s left front hoof will severely hinder Big Brown’s chances in the 1 1/2-mile Belmont.

“It’s more of an annoyance to a horse than anything else,” Moss said. “It’s something that can cause some minor discomfort to a horse and, in a worst case scenario, could prevent him from putting out the full 100% of effort.”

Big Brown’s future after the Belmont Stakes was another topic of interest, as the participants agreed an early retirement to Three Chimneys Farm in Midway, Kentucky, would hurt the sport.

“It’s a huge detriment,” Bailey said. “It would be like Tiger Woods retiring after his second year on the tour. I wish to God that he would stay around longer, and I’m sure [trainer] Rick Dutrow wants him to stay around for the rest of the year.”

“To be honest with you, if Big Brown wins the Belmont Stakes, I will be surprised if he ever runs again,” Moss added. “Maybe I’ll be wrong. I hope so.”

McQuade praised Dutrow for his value as a media-friendly personality who has drawn plenty of attention.

“He’s unique, he’s a character,” McQuade said. “In sports these days, that’s what we’re looking for. A lot of people can guarantee a lot of things, but I think the style in which he does it and the matter-of-fact way in which he does it is what’s so appealing.”

ABC and ESPN will broadcast seven hours of coverage from Belmont Park on Saturday, including the Belmont Stakes undercard and the feature race. The telecast will offer more than 30 camera angles, including a rail cam, which was not used in the first two legs of the Triple Crown.

“I think viewers will get closer than they ever have before to the running of the horses,” McQuade said.

Joe Nevills is a Thoroughbred Times editorial intern