Mike Brunker Horse racing editor • Profile • E-mail

With Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense on the sidelines, the 139th Belmont Stakes initially looked as though it would simply be a coronation of Preakness winner Curlin. But that was before The Queen signed up for Saturday’s race.

Rags to Riches, who will seek to become the first 3-year-old filly to win the Test of a Champion in 102 years, turned what could have been a lackluster renewal of the 1 ½-mile third leg of the Triple Crown into a palace intrigue. Not only is she hoping to knife Curlin in the back, she will simultaneously have to prevent Hard Spun, the scheming would-be usurper, from spoiling her ascension to the throne.

Even before sitting down to handicap the race, all horseplayers should tip our fedoras to Rags to Riches’ owners Derrick Smith and Michael Tabor for saving us from a third straight meaningless Belmont Stakes. And while we’re at it, let’s thrust our cigars skyward for trainer Todd Pletcher, who will attempt to break his 0-for-28 winless streak in Triple Crown races with a Bronx cheer at racing history.

But will we be cheering these same worthies after the race?

You have to flip through a lot of pages in the New York Racing Association press guide to get to the last filly to win the Belmont Stakes, the longest and most grueling of the three Triple Crown races. The answer to that particular trivia question is Tanya, who knee-capped six rivals to win the 1905 Belmont by half a length.

But take a closer look at that chart and you’ll see that the race was contested at 1 ¼ miles that year — not the current  distance of 1 ½ miles — and read the chart footnotes, where it says that after opening a three-length lead in the stretch, Tanya was “finishing flagging … and just lasted the journey.”

That means the only 3-year-old female to win the race at the current distance or beyond is the aptly named Ruthless, who beat three male rivals to capture the inaugural running of the then-1 5/8 mile Belmont Stakes by a head in 1867, collecting a king’s ransom of $1,850 for her efforts.

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Only 10 fillies have tested the males since Tanya’s victory, but optimists will note that four have hit the board – Flying Fairy (third in 1913); Flambino (third in 1927); Genuine Risk (second in 1980) and My Flag (third in 1996). But there also is less there than meets the eye: Flying Fairy was third in a field of just four horses and Flambino was third in a field of six.

Genuine Risk ran a truly great race, grabbing the lead in the stretch before surrendering it to Temperance Hill.  My Flag closed well for the show but never threatened.

Silverbulletday was the last uppity filly to even try the boys, finishing seventh in 1999.

All of which is a long-winded way of pointing out that even though Rags to Riches enters the race off four straight victories, three of them in Grade 1 stakes races, she is up against history on Saturday.

But then I’ve always had a soft spot for the ladies, which is why I think the 3-1 third choice in the seven-horse field can upset the apple cart of the ages and beat Curlin on Saturday.

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