California Chrome's Co-Owner Apologizes for Post-Belmont Stakes Rant

The notable outcomes from Saturday's Belmont Stakes were:1. Tonalist won,ending California Chrome's bid to end the 36-year drought of American thoroughbred racing Triple Crown winners.2. California Chrome co-owner Steve Coburn's nationally televised rant.Moments after the Belmont ended, Coburn in an NBC Sports interview made a series of critical comments about the Triple Crown process.The statements set off a wave of criticism throughout thesports commentary world.On Monday, Coburn apologized during an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America." A tearful Coburn said he was "very emotional" following California Chrome's fourth-place finish in the Belmont.“This is America’s horse. I wanted this so much for this horse to win the Triple Crown for the people of America," he said.If you're unfamiliar with Coburn's rants over the weekend, here's a brief rundown.Coburn appeared to be angry that Tonalist hadn't run in the Kentucky Derby or Preakness. Immediately following the race, he lashed out at the system and, implicitly, the Belmont winner's owners."I look at it this way: If you can't make enough points to get into the Kentucky Derby, you can't run in the other two races," Coburn told NBC.  Related: Should The Triple Crown Be Changed?Coburn went on to say that horses shouldn't be allowed to run in the Belmont without having run in the previous Triple Crown races. "This is a coward's way out," Coburn said.Coburn stood by his statements Sunday. Hetold ESPN: "These people nominate their horses for the Triple Crown and then they hold out two [races] and then come back and run one. That would be like me at 6-2 playing basketball with a kid in a wheelchair. They haven't done anything with their horses in the Triple Crown. There were three horses in this race that ran in the first two -- California Chrome, Ride on Curlin and General a Rod -- none of the other horses did. You figure out. You ask yourself, 'Would it be fair if I played basketball with a child in a wheelchair?'"On Monday, however, Coburn on "Good Morning America" expressed his regrets to practically everyone involved, including Tonalist's owners.He said he felt "very ashamed. I need to apologize to a lot of people."