The Dwyer Stakes was won by Fly Down and he could be a real threat in Belmont Stakes betting. He beat the favored Drosselmeyer with relative ease just over a week ago. Fly Down should get some action in Belmont Stakes odds based on his Dwyer Stakes win. Belmont Stakes betting could also include Drosselmeyer even though he finished second to Fly Down in the Dwyer Stakes. The horse is almost assuredly going to get a new jockey as the owners want to make a change from Kent Desormeaux. Elliott Walden, who is the racing manager for the WinStar Farm of Bill Caner and Kenny Troutt who owns Drosselmeyer said that Desormeaux won’t ride the horse in the Belmont. “The jockey is undecided,” Walden said, “We want to try something a little different. We want to see if we can get over the hump. Not that Kent has done anything wrong. Sometimes you need to shake things up.” Last year it was Desormeaux winning in Belmont Stakes betting aboard Summer Bird.
In the Dwyer Stakes it was Fly Down running away from the field late. Drosselmeyer was the heavy favorite but Fly Down easily went past him in the stretch and won going away. Fly Down earned a 100 Beyer Speed figure and that number puts him very much in the mix in Belmont Stakes odds. The horse is trained by Nick Zito and he knows how to win Triple Crown races. He was ridden in the Dwyer by Jose Lezcano. The win by Fly Down was his first stakes win. He definitely has the pedigree to be a good horse as he is the son on Mineshaft. “He didn’t break that badly, but he didn’t break that well,” Lezcano said, “He stumbled a couple of times, but after that he grabbed the bit and sat behind horses, just waiting. When I asked, he gave me everything he had. He’s going to be a good horse.”
Normally it is the Peter Pan Stakes that is the prep race for the Belmont Stakes but this year it was the Dwyer Stakes. Zito will not only have Fly Down for the Belmont but he will also have Kentucky Derby second place finisher Ice Box. “We’ll see what happens in the next 30 days,” Zito said. “He (Fly Down) puts a lot into his races. If he has a good month, if he rebounds from this, if he’s OK, we’ll look at the Belmont.”