Nine to 13 Expected in Belmont Field

A field of between nine and 13 is expected for the Belmont Stakes, final race of the Triple Crown, on June 10. The lineup will include several horses that weren’t good enough in the first two Triple Crown races, plus Thunder Gulch, the Kentucky Derby winner, and Timber Country, the Preakness winner.

Holdovers from the Derby include Knockadoon, In Character and Wild Syn. At Churchill Downs, Knockadoon was seventh, In Character 10th and Wild Syn, after battling Serena’s Song for the lead through a blazing :45 4/5 half-mile, was finally eased by jockey Randy Romero and finished last.

Another Derby horse, Citadeed, was ninth May 6, but his camp was encouraged when the European import, winning for the first time in the United States, took the Peter Pan Stakes on Sunday at Belmont Park.

Citadeed will carry 126 pounds in the Belmont, 14 more than his impost in the Peter Pan.

Treasurer, third in the Peter Pan, is also expected to run in the Belmont. The Peter Pan, Treasurer’s first U.S. race on dirt, sometimes is an effective springboard for Belmont horses. Colonial Affair, A.P. Indy, Danzig Connection and Coastal ran in the 1 1/8-mile Peter Pan before winning the 1 1/2-mile Belmont.

Star Standard, fourth in the May 20 Preakness after leading briefly at the top of the stretch, is another probable Belmont starter. His sire, Risen Star, won the Belmont in 1988.

Other horses that might be entered in the Belmont include Peaks And Valleys, winner of the Derby Trial and Illinois Derby; Is Sveikatas, who has won two of 11 starts at New York tracks; Ave’s Flag, whose only stakes victories have been in races restricted to New York-breds; Jersey Derby winner Da Hoss, and Composer, who won a race at Belmont on Saturday.

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THE RATINGS

Horse S 1 2 3 Earnings 1. Timber Country 12 5 1 4 $1,560,400 2. Thunder Gulch 11 5 2 2 $1,492,146 3. Serena’s Song 16 9 2 1 $1,351,435 4. Tejano Run 10 3 3 2 $626,147 5. Jumron 9 5 2 1 $404,380 6. Oliver’s Twist 9 4 2 0 $390,755 7. Peaks And Valleys 7 5 1 1 $548,925 8. Citadeed 8 3 0 1 $119,436 9. Star Standard 12 4 1 1 $202,592 10. Mecke 19 5 3 6 $373,570

Advisory panel for The Times’ Triple Crown Ratings: Jim Bolus, racing historian; Trevor Denman, announcer at four Southern California tracks; Tom Durkin, track announcer in New York and Florida, and Dave Johnson, racing telecaster.