Big Brown Betting Rides Again in Haskell

Big Brown finally makes his horse betting return as he races in the $1 Million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park on Sunday. The last time anyone saw Big Brown in a race was in his attempt to win the Triple Crown. Although Big Brown went of as the favorite at 1/3 odds, he finished dead last in the Belmont Stakes. Was the Belmont a fluke or was Big Brown just not having a good day? Sunday’s race will go a long way toward deciding how good Big Brown really is.

"It means more to me than anyone else to have him run his race, because I'm in charge here, I'm supposed to know what is happening with this horse," trainer Richard Dutrow said, "If he goes and [pulls up] again people are going to look at me like I'm a complete idiot." The reputation of Big Brown as a great race horse is definitely on the line Sunday in the Haskell. “I think it's everything," owner Michael Iavarone said, "This race is as important as any race he's ever run in, including the Belmont Stakes. We need to reestablish his position amongst great horses. I think people are questioning that for him. To retire in the eyes of racing enthusiasts anything other than a great horse, I would be disappointed."

Big Brown was considered such a great horse that the Triple Crown was a virtual certainty as he went off as the heavy favorite in horse betting odds for the Belmont. After Dutrow was done running his mouth, very few people believed that Big Brown could lose. But he did. Now the horse racing world will see if the Belmont was a fluke or not. "He's been training like he's ready to run," Dutrow said. "I don't see any kind of issues in any kind of way, but I didn't for the Belmont and he wound up pulling up in the Belmont. The only way of me knowing anything is watching him run." Big Brown has had regular workouts in the past month including a six furlong workout last Saturday. He is expected to have a three-furlong blowout on Friday at Aqueduct before traveling to Monmouth on Saturday.

"If he wasn't training good, you guys would know it, and we wouldn't be pointing towards the race," Dutrow said. "But he's been training really, really good. I'm happy with the way things are." The horse betting field for Sunday's Haskell is weak. If Big Brown doesn't dominate the field then the horse just isn't that good. Harlem Rocker and Hey Byrn are not even part of the field. The field looks to be Atoned, Cool Coal Man, Magical Forest, Nistle's Crunch, and Truth Rules. "We certainly can't be afraid of the competition," Dutrow said. "We feel like he's just up against himself. If he runs his race we're going to be in good shape. If he runs like last time we're not going to be in good shape. It's very simple as far as I'm concerned."