Tag: Belmont Park

Highland Chief captured last month's Grade 1 Man o' War as the 19/1 longest shot in the field. He'll have his hands full at 6/1 repeating in a deep, experienced Manhattan field at Belmont Park Saturday. (Image: Coglianese Photos)

Highland Chief Faces Tougher Trip at Shorter Odds in Manhattan

Last month, Highland Chief passed his first stateside Grade 1 test with a flourish, beating four other rivals, including Champion Turf Male Yibir, to win the Grade 1 Man o’ War at Belmont Park. A nice score to be sure, especially as the 19/1 longest shot in the field. Now, […]

Jack Christopher puts in a workout before Saturday's Grade 1 Woody Stephens at Belmont Park. The one-time Kentucky Derby hopeful is the 1/2 favorite to remain undefeated. (Image: Coglianese Photos/Susie Raisher)

Jack Christopher Ready for More Undercard Magic in Woody Stephens

The Jack Christopher Comeback Tour makes its next stop at the Grade 1 Woody Stephens, setting down once again on a Triple Crown undercard race. The seven-furlong Woody Stephens will be one of the eight Grade 1s on Saturday’s Belmont Stakes undercard. It’s not to be confused with the Grade […]

We the People skipped his way to a 10 1/4-length victory in the Peter Pan Stakes. He is the 2/1 morning line favorite for Saturday's 154th Belmont Stakes. (Image: Coglianese Photos)

We the People Established as Belmont Stakes’ 2/1 Favorite

While Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike has taken all of the attention over the past two weeks, We the People took 2/1 morning line favorite status for the Triple Crown’s final jewel. Post positions were drawn and morning line odds established for Saturday’s 154th Belmont Stakes. That 1 1/2-mile “Test […]

Jackie's Warrior won his fourth Grade 1 race with this May score in the Churchill Downs. He is the presumed favorite for Friday's Grade 2 True North Stakes in the Belmont Park Racing Festival. (Image: Coady Photography)

Champion Sprinter Jackie’s Warrior Points His Way to True North Stakes

Among the many marquee horses you’ll see at this weekend’s Belmont Stakes Racing Festival is reigning Eclipse Award-winning sprinter Jackie’s Warrior, the marquee name in Friday’s Grade 2 True North. The True North is one of five stakes on Friday’s 11-race card. That card is headlined by the Grade 1 […]

Barber Road, seen here working out before the Kentucky Derby, gets Eclipse Award-winning jockey Joel Rosario for Saturday's 154th Belmont Stakes. (Image: Coady Photography)

Champion Joel Rosario Takes Barber Road’s Reins for the Belmont Stakes

Eclipse Award-winning jockey Joel Rosario will pilot Barber Road in next Saturday’s Belmont Stakes, news his agent Ron Anderson confirmed over the weekend Anderson told the Daily Racing Form that Rosario, a two-time Belmont Stakes winner, will segue from Epicenter to Barber Road for the Belmont Stakes. Epicenter, who finished […]

Emmanuel's last victory came in this allowance optional-claimer at Tampa Bay Downs three starts ago in January. He makes his turf debut in Saturday's Grade 2 Pennine Ridge at Belmont Park. (Image: SV Photography)

Former Derby Prospect Emmanuel Ready for His Turf Close-Up

One week before several of his former Triple Crown trail rivals tackle the “Test of the Champion:” the Belmont Stakes, Emmanuel tackles his first turf test in Saturday’s Grade 2 Pennine Ridge at Belmont Park. The 1 1/8-mile trek along Belmont Park’s inner turf course serves as a key prep […]

Americanrevolution won the Grade 1 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct in his last start. He headlines the Blame Stakes field, the penultimate leg of this week's Cross Country Pick 5. (Image: Coglianese Photos)

This Cross Country Pick 5 Features Grade 1 Winner, Four Stakes Races

The return of a Grade 1 winner and an intriguing Grade 2 stakes race provide the highlight of this week’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5. This week’s races come to horseplayers from Belmont Park and Churchill Downs. The aforementioned Grade 1 winner is Americanrevolution, who returns six […]

Temple City Terror won last year's Keertana Overnight Stakes at Churchill Downs. She goes for her fifth victory in the same event Saturday. It is the third race in this week's Cross Country Pick 5. (Image: Coady Photography)

Cross Country Pick 5 Offers Several Deep Fields, Two Stakes

Two stakes races, one featuring a Breeders’ Cup board hitter, highlight Saturday’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5, which come to you from Belmont Park and Churchill Downs. This is the first of two Cross Country Pick 5s this weekend. The multi-race, multi-track wager resets Monday with stakes […]

Another Mystery heads an overflow field in the Grade 3 Louisville Stakes, the lone stakes race on this week's Cross Country Pick 5. (Image: Coady Photography)

Louisville Stakes Anchors this Week’s Cross Country Pick 5

If you need to take a break from handicapping the Preakness Stakes, this week’s New York Racing Association’s Cross Country Pick 5 offers an all-turf series from Belmont Park and Churchill Downs. The lone stakes race in the weekly wager is the Grade 3 Louisville Stakes from Churchill Downs. The 11th […]

Bella Sofia captured the Grade 1 Test Stakes last summer at Saratoga. She is one to watch in the Cross Country Pick 5's opening leg -- the Vagrancy Stakes. (Image: NYRA Photo)

Belmont Park Holds a Monopoly on Cross Country Pick 5

The New York Racing Association keeps its Cross Country Pick 5 in-house this week, including races exclusively on Belmont Park’s Man o’ War Day card. All five races are graded stakes events, the five on Belmont Park’s Saturday card. That card features 11 races total and is the center of […]

Snapper Sinclair is one of three contenders in teh Cross Country Pick 5s lone stakes race this week: Belmont Park's Elusive Quality. (Image: Grace Clark/Kentucky Downs)

With One Stakes, this Cross Country Pick 5 Puts Handicappers to the Test

A million-dollar gelding and one of the first stakes races on Belmont Park’s Spring/Summer Meet provide two of the storylines for this week’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5. The weekly, multi-track, multi-race wager comes from Belmont Park and Oaklawn Park this week. While it’s light on stakes […]

Vault won last year's Ruffian Stakes, which returns Sunday, May 8. That makes it eligible for the NYRA Triple Play Pick 3, which covers the final three races on Belmont Park's Sunday cards. (Image: NYRA/Coglianese Photos)

NYRA Plays Three with New Triple Play Pick 3 Wager

The New York Racing Association unveiled a new wager, the NYRA Triple Play, that begins at Belmont Park’s upcoming spring/summer meet. The Pick 3 wager comes with a $3 minimum and covers the final three races of Belmont Park’s Sunday cards. It also comes with a hefty 24% takeout rate. By […]

Jockey Luis Saez revels in Essential Quality's 2021 Belmont Stakes victory. That Triple Crown finale is one of eight Grade 1s on Belmont Park's June 11 card. (Image: NYRA Photo)

Come for the Belmont Stakes, Stay for Seven Other Grade 1s in One Day

The biggest one-day collection of Grade 1 races outside of the Breeders’ Cup comes June 11 at the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Belmont Park. The New York track will play host to eight Grade 1s that day, headlined by the third leg of the Triple Crown – the 154th […]

Gamine won her second-to-last race: the Grade 1 Ballerina Stakes at Saratoga. It was her ninth win in 11 career races and fifth Grade 1 triumph. She was retired Tuesday. (Image: Coglianese Photos/Susie Raisher)

Champion Sprinter Gamine Retired Mere Days Into Her 5-Year-Old Season

Gamine, the incomparable sprinter who is among the fastest runners this century, was retired Monday, according to a release from her owner, Pandora jewelry baron Michael Lund Petersen. Through a representative, Petersen announced the now-5-year-old mare will reside at Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm in Kentucky. With a 9-0-1 record and […]

Irad Ortiz Jr. and Public Sector (9) surge and steal the Grade 2 Hill Prince from Never Surprised (back). The Chad Brown-trained 3-year-old is 4-for-6 in 2021. (Image: Susie Raisher)

No Surprise: Public Sector Steals His Third Straight Graded Stakes Race

That Public Sector took his second consecutive graded stakes race at the expense of Never Surprised shouldn’t have surprised anyone who watched the two 3-year-old turf prospects duel in Saturday’s Grade 2 Hill Prince at Belmont Park. The M.O. was as simple as it was familiar to anyone versed with […]

Following Sea and Joel Rosario wired the field in Saturday's Grade 2 Vosburgh Stakes at Belmont Park. This victory gives trainer Todd Pletcher options on which Breeders' Cup race the 3-year-old will run. (Image: NYRA Photo)

Following Sea’s Vosburgh Victory Gives Pletcher Enviable Options

Even as he reveled in Following Sea’s gate-to-wire victory in Saturday’s six-furlong Grade 2 Vosburgh Stakes at Belmont Park, trainer Todd Pletcher said he planned lengthier travels for his 3-year-old. “He’s a very talented horse and trains very impressively. He’s also galloped out in a fashion that would indicate he […]

Althiqa, seen here winning the Grade 1 Just A Game at Belmont Park in June, will be a popular choice for bettors in the Grade 1 First Lady Stakes at Keeneland. (Image: Godolphin)

Breeders’ Cup Challenge Pick 6 Wager Returns With Some Familiar Names

The Breeders’ Cup Challenge Pick 6 wager returns Saturday, incorporating Keeneland’s opening weekend with Belmont Park to create an intriguing handicapping puzzle featuring familiar names. This is the second version of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Pick 6, which mandates bettors pick winners from each of six Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series […]