Curlin ready for turf debut

NEW YORK – Horse of the Year Curlin takes the first step today on a journey that could carry him all the way to France.

Curlin is set for his turf debut in the $500,000 Man o’ War Stakes at Belmont Park. If the 4-year-old runs well on the grass, majority owner Jess Jackson and trainer Steve Asmussen plan to send the colt to Paris for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp on Oct. 5.

It would be a historic trip, with Curlin bidding to become the first horse to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic and Europe’s premier race.

Curlin drew post seven, the outside spot, in the Man o’ War. The race will provide a solid challenge as the field contains two Breeders’ Cup Turf winners in Better Talk Now (2004) and Red Rocks (2006).

Curlin, the Preakness Stakes winner, has been dominant on dirt, having won five straight.