I get it that the trainer should know best, but just to offer a little fact - 12 of the last 25 horses that attempted the Derby-Preakness double won the Preakness and many that did not win finished in the money. Did it help Rich Strike skipped the Preakness? OK, it does not seem much would have helped that horse, but they missed an opportunity to run an apparently sharp horse in G1 race. Part of the reason for the two prep season is to keep the horse fresh for the Derby for peak performance and in return, that theoretically makes that two week turnaround possible. While I agree the Saratoga Belmont would put an asterisk on the Triple Crown, in my mind, they are statistically skipping about a 50/50 shot at being one race from horse racing immortality.