In his five-race career, Big Brown still has not beaten a horse of real quality, nor has he been fast enough to prove he is a horse for the ages. His Kentucky Derby time was on par with recent winners such as Street Sense; his Preakness time of 1 minute 54.8 seconds on a lightning-fast Pimlico track was undistinguished, thanks to Desormeaux' restraint.

Of course, it's not Big Brown's fault that he was born into a sub-par thoroughbred generation. But if the colt is going to have his name linked with the likes of Affirmed, Seattle Slew, Secretariat and Citation — the last four Triple Crown winners — racing fans want to see him do something more than beat bad horses handily.

Perhaps Big Brown will finally get a challenge when he faces the intriguing Casino Drive three weeks hence. A superbly bred half-brother to two Belmont Stakes winners, the colt won his racing debut in Japan and then captured a prep for the Belmont by five lengths. However, the definitive test for Big Brown — as for most 3-year-olds — ought to come when he faces older horses in the fall. If he runs against Curlin, the 2007 Preakness winner and horse of the year, nobody will ever again question the quality of his opposition.

Because Big Brown lives in an era when the top thoroughbred stallions are extraordinarily valuable, he will have limited opportunities to show his stuff. On Saturday his majority owner, the IEAH Stable, sealed a $50 million deal to send Big Brown to Three Chimneys Farm for stud duty next year. When a horse is worth so much money, the owner and the breeder who buy him may be reluctant to risk defeats that might tarnish his reputation. In recent years, outstanding Preakness winners such as Point Given (2001), Smarty Jones (2004) and Afleet Alex (2005) all were retired before they ever had the chance to face older rivals.

People who understand the economics of the game would not bet that they ever will see a Big Brown vs. Curlin confrontation. It is possible that Big Brown could leave the sport before anyone knows how good he might be.

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