Two major questions hang over American Pharoah heading into the Belmont Stakes: Can he be the first horse since 1978 to win the Triple Crown? And why is his name misspelled?
The first will be answered June 6 at Belmont Park. The second answer may lie with a 64-year-old registered nurse in a tiny central Missouri town.
As American Pharoah gained prominence, his owners — Zayat Stables, led by Ahmed Zayat — were asked about the seemingly mistaken rendering of pharaoh. At first, Zayat’s son Justin, the racing and stallion manager for the stable, said the mistake was made by the Jockey Club, the organization that registers thoroughbreds in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico and approves their names.