Lukas has Day in Belmont Stakes By Richard Rosenblatt Associated Press ELMONT, N.Y. -- Trainer D. Wayne Lukas and jockey Pat Day hooked up again to win a Triple Crown race on Saturday. WHAT THEY'RE SAYING Quotes from owners, trainers and jockeys in Saturday's Belmont Stakes: "I was hoping for more pace. At the five-eighths pole, he kicked in and got going good. At the eighth pole, I still thought I had a chance. But Commendable had too easy a time." -- Aptitude jockey Alex Solis. "I thought I had it in good shape. I was patting myself on the back at the three-eighths pole. When I asked him to run, he really kicked in on the turn for home. I thought I was home free, then. But as we straightened out, he got the wobbles and I didn't know what was happening. He then made another big run. I give him an `A' for effort." Unshaded jockey Shane Sellers. "He had a picture-perfect trip. The pace was reasonable and he was in the right place. He didn't finish the way I thought he should have. I have some serious concerns about how the heat affected him today because he came back a little wobbly." -- Wheelaway trainer John Kimmel. "Our worst fears came true. We didn't get the pace we needed. He made a nice run but couldn't close into those splits." -- Impeachmen trainer Todd Pletcher. "He gave a nice effort and didn't embarrass himself. Now maybe he'll get back to New York-breds." -- Appearing Now jockey Mike Luzzi. "I have no excuses. He just didn't run today." -- Postponed trainer Scotty Schulhofer. "I was OK until the last half-mile. I still had horse. But he was done by the time we got to the quarter-pole." -- Hugh Hefner jockey Jorge Chavez. "There's really no excuse for him. I don't think my horse was good enough for those horses. We (trainer Ralph Ziadie and I) knew this race was going to be tough for him. We were in good position early in the race. He just quit trying after the half." -- Tahkodha Hills jockey Eibar Coa. "He was standing well in the gate and then he put his head down when the gate opened. He lunged into the air. The race was over after that. He should have been where Commendable was, but again, the race was over for him after the start." -- Globalize jockey Mike Smith. "He fought me the entire way. He just kept pulling and ran himself into submission." -- Curule jockey Jerry Bailey. This time, the 3-year-old colt Commendable gave the pair of Hall of Famers their second Belmont Stakes triumph together. "I have to commend Mr. Lukas on his ability to bring him up to the race," said Day, who won his other Belmont in 1994 aboard Lukas' Tabasco Cat. "And to have the courage to put him in and take a shot." Lukas, who nearly won the Triple Crown with Charismatic last year before the colt injured a leg in the stretch and finished third in the Belmont, has now won 13 Triple Crown races -- four Kentucky Derbys, five Preakness' and four Belmonts. Day has five wins in Triple Crown races, three for Lukas -- twice in the Preakness with Tabasco Cat in '94 and Timber Country in '95, and now with Commendable. Day also won the Derby in '92 aboard Lil E. Tee and the '89 Belmont on Easy Goer. Without Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus and Preakness winner Red Bullet in the race, Lukas figured Commendable had a pretty good shot in the 11-horse Belmont field. On a steamy day at Belmont Park, with temperatures reaching 95 degrees, Commendable was sent off at 18-1, while Aptitude was the 9-5 favorite among the crowd of 67,810. Both horses came into the race with only one win -- each having won a maiden race. Aptitude was second in the Derby, and second in the Belmont. Commendable was 17th in the Derby. Both skipped the Preakness. Also in on the win were owners Bob and Beverly Lewis, who nearly won Triple Crowns with Silver Charm in '97 and Charismatic last year. This time, the Lewis' finally won a Belmont. "We won two Kentucky Derbys, two Preakness' and the elusive Belmont is finally ours," Lewis said. Lukas said he was "almost distraught" that Commendable didn't run better in the Derby, but after assessing the Belmont field, he decided the son of Gone West could give the others a run for the blanket of carnations that are draped over the Belmont winner. He also knew he needed the right rider. "I really wanted Pat Day. That was paramount in making our decision," Lukas said. "I'm not saying we wouldn't have run without him, but I really wanted Pat." Day was aboard the Lukas-trained High Yield in the Derby and Preakness. But after finishing 15th in the Derby and seventh in the Preakness, Lukas pulled the colt out of the Belmont and went back to Commendable, last ridden by Day in the Lexington Stakes on Aprill 22. As expected, Hugh Hefner went to the lead and Commendable, who was 0-for-6 after breaking his maiden last August, stayed with him on the outside. It was the plan from the start. "It was a wonderful trip," Day said. "When I talked to Mr. Lukas, he said the important thing was to have an energy-saving ride. When we got to the quarter-pole, I knew we had a pretty good cushion, but I didn't know what the last quarter of a mile had in store for us." It had Aptitude coming on strong, but Commendable held on to win by 1½ lengths. "He kept rolling, and when I asked him, he kept right on going," Day said. With so much being made of who wasn't in the race, perhaps racing fans should have paid more attention to Lukas. "When you least suspect it," Bob Lewis said, "he nails you."

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