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Eddie Read Stakes Woodbine Oaks Day San Diego Hcp Day Highlander Stakes Day North America Cup |
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 Jockey Jose Ortiz celebrates aboard Golden Tempo after winning the Belmont Stakes Photos courtesy of Amber Chalfin of Downthestretchphotos.com. |
The $2 million Belmont Stakes (G1) presented by NYRA Bets was contested at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday, the last of three years it will be run here before returning home to the rebuilt Belmont Park in 2027. Due to Saratoga's 1 1/8 mile configuration and narrow turns, the "Test of the Champion" is shortened to 1 1/4 miles, the same distance as the Kentucky Derby and the Travers Stakes. Conditions were less than ideal for the 46,128 fans in attendance, with rain earlier in the day which stopped in time for the stakes races, however the main track remained fast and the turf courses firm with a daytime high of 72.
 Down the stretch in the Belmont Stakes. |
Jockey Luis Saez sent 11-1 Powershift to the lead first time by through fractions of 23.96, 48.29, and 1:12.38 while pressed by 14-1 Growth Equity and stalked by 24-1 longest shot Vitruvian Man. Turning for home Powershift tired allowing Growth Equity to inherit the lead through 1 mile in 1:37.56 before also tiring badly. Golden Tempo, last early under Jose Ortiz, came out 3 wide for room and rallied to win by 1 1/4 lengths over late-running 6-1 Commandment in 2:03.49. It was a long 4 lengths back to favorite Renegade third.
Pgm Horse Jockey Win Place Show 9 Golden Tempo Ortiz 14.00 7.32 3.88 7 Commandment Velazquez 7.02 4.08 4 Renegade Ortiz Jr. 2.52 Winning Time: 2:03.49 $1 Exacta 9-7 55.67 $1 Trifecta 9-7-4 102.64 $1 Superfecta 9-7-4-3 237.90 |
Left: Golden Tempo heads to the winner's circle. Winning trainer Cherie DeVaux said, "So he broke a lot more alertly. He did come out of the gate and get a little lost, took a bit of a right hand turn, but showed a lot more speed out of the gate, which all signs were pointing to he was going to put himself more into the race. Especially with a slower pace than we had in the Derby. He's taken a lot of steps forward, physically and mentally, and it really showed today. Jose found himself at the back of the pack, but he was going to be wide if he didn't tuck in, which I was pleased with that. Jose just rode him super confidently. He knew he had a lot of horse under him, and at the top of the stretch, he had him in a position to make that run, and Golden Tempo did the rest."
Right: Golden Tempo returns after the race. Winning co-owner and breeder Daisy Phipps Pulito said, "It's been a hot minute since we won the Belmont Stakes, [nearly] 40 years, but what my great grandmother, grandfather and father built, Ogden and I, and the Violas, got the rewards from. I mean, he's a phenomenal horse; he's got a fantastic pedigree. Obviously, there were doubters after the Derby, like Cherie [DeVaux] said, we were very confident with the kind of horse we had going into the Derby and going into the Belmont. I'm glad everyone else got to see that today, too."
Left: Jose Ortiz celebrates aboard Golden Tempo after the Belmont Stakes. Winning jockey Jose Ortiz said, "He handled the track very well. He handled the 1 1/4 very well. I tried to keep him tactical, in contention with the field. I tried to keep him tactical. I tried to make my move at the right time, with Renegade and Commandment. Split between them and he responded well. I think the break helped him a lot. He broke very good. I was able to be last, but he was in contact with the field. I kept close contact with the field and when I asked him to go, he was there for me."
Right: Golden Tempo heads heads to the winner's circle. DeVaux added, "I do think we made the right decision (so skip the Preakness). I don't think we'd have the same horse if we did run back in two weeks. That's a horse-by-horse, case-by-case decision. And for him, as much growth as we've seen in him, it would've been hard for him to follow that up in two weeks and then subsequently three weeks. Obviously, the Travers is going to be our next big goal and how we get there, but you can see it on the track, what all of our markers are, is what we're hoping to translate to what we saw today."
Left: Second place finisher Commandment races in second in deep stretch. Trainer Brad Cox said, "I thought we could maybe be a little closer, but we kind of wanted to be back there in the Kentucky Derby looking back on it. I saw Renegade to his inside and I thought, if he's the horse to beat then we're right there with him, so, we're going to have to go with him. We were able to beat him, but we weren't able to get past the other one." Jockey John Velazquez added, "My horse put up a really good fight. I was trying to hold the eventual winner around the turn, and my horse just isn't good on the turn. Then when we came down the lane and he actually went on with him. The last 1/16 mile, [Golden Tempo] outran him."
Right: Third place finisher and beaten favorite Renegade after finishing second in the Kentucky Derby. Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. said, "I had a good trip, honestly. He was clear going to the quarter pole and they were closing today. He gave me a good kick but not enough today." Trainer Todd Pletcher added, "Irad said he broke sharply and he kind of just let him position himself where he was. He got to the backside and had Johnny [Velazquez, aboard Commandment] outside him and said he was kind of laying right on him. He wanted to clear him a little bit so he moved a little bit to get that position. He hit the clear when he wanted to and he gave him a shorter punch than he did in the Derby."
Of the three Triple Crown races, the undercard of the Belmont Stakes has the most prestigious races on its undercard.
The $1 million Hill 'N' Dale Metropolitan Handicap (G1) featured a short field of 7 older horses going 1 mile on the main track looking for automatic entry into the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile. Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) winner and Saudi Cup (G1) runner-up Nysos was sent off as the 7-5 favorite over 2-1 second choice Journalism, 3rd in the Oaklawn Handicap (G2), and 5-1 third choice Knightsbridge, 6th in the Churchill Downs Stakes (G1) after winning the Gulfstream Park Mile (G3).
Nysos was quickest away through an opening quarter in 23.52 before 6-1 fourth choice Antiquarian took over down the backstretch through a half in 45.61. On the far turn Knightsbridge gained a short lead through 3/4 in 1:09.49. Into the stretch Nysos regained the lead through 7f in 1:21.81. Kept to task by Flavien Prat, Nysos drew off to win by 4 lengths over Knightsbridge in 1:34.85, just 13/100 second off the track record. It was another 3/4 length back to Journalism third.
Nysos heads to the winner's circle. Winning trainer Bob Baffert said, "When he took him back, I just thought, 'I hope he knows what he's doing; he's either riding a really smart race or he's not running,' then when I saw him swing him out, then I thought, they were smoking up there. I almost brought him up here last year but didn't do it. We had this targeted [this year]. It takes a little bit of the sting out of the Saudi Cup. What a talent. I always thought he was one of the best older horses in training and today he showed it."
Immediately before the Belmont Stakes was the $1 million Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes (G1), with a field of 9 older horses going 1 3/16 miles over the Mellon turf course. Prix d'Harcourt (G2) winner and Prix Ganay (G1) runner-up Bright Picture was sent off as the 2-1 favorite over 3-1 second choice Rhetorical, winner of the Old Forester Turf Classic (G1), and 5-1 third choice Deterministic, last year's winner off his Fort Marcy (G3) win.
Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. sent Rhetorical to the lead first time by through fractions of 22.99, 47.01, and 1:09.83 while pressed by Deterministic and stalked by 8-1 fifth choice Make Me King. Rhetorical continued to lead through 1 mile in 1:32.92 but Deterministc came out for room under Kendrick Carmouche and outfinished Rhetorical to prevail by 1/2 length in a new track record 1:50.50. It was another 1/2 length back to 15-2 fourth choice One Stripe third.
Deterministic heads back to the barn. Winning trainer Miguel Clement said, "He's top class. I've always thought he was the best turf horse in the country. He proved that today. I thought we deserved the Eclipse Award last year, but I'm biased. Hopefully, everyone will understand why I think he's the leader of the division. I think he'll be a more attractive stallion prospect by keeping him closer, or cutting him back to a mile. That's probably the path we'll do, but we'll talk to the connections, and I'm sure we'll come up with the right plan."
The $400,000 True North Stakes (G3) featured a field of 6 older horses sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs on the main track. Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) winner and Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1) runner-up Bentornato was sent off as the 11-10 favorite over 9-5 second choice Book'em Danno, second in the Carter (G2), and 4-1 third choice Imagination, 4th in the Churchill Downs (G1) after winning the Riyadh Dirt Sprint (G2).
Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. sent Bentornato to the lead out of the chute through fractions of 21.76 and 43.44 while pressed by 21-1 longest shot Listenupshance and stalked by Book'em Danno. Into the lane Listenupshance gained a short lead through 3/4 in 1:07.95 but Book'em Danno under Paco Lopez came out 4 wide and rallied to win by 3/4 length over favorite Bentornato in 1:14.79. It was a nose back to Listenupshance third.
Book'em Danno heads to the winner's circle. Winning trainer Derek Ryan said, "He's been training unbelievable. He got beat the first time because I ran him one work short. It was a mishap, about a month before, a jockey didn't show up, I had a different jockey work him and it wasn't even worth working, but I wasn't cranking him for it. Paco [Lopez] executed the way I wanted, maybe we put this to bed now, I'm tired of hearing of Bentornato. I left it up to Paco. He said I'm going to be close. I said, 'If he's two behind [Bentornato] turning for home, he'll get him.' And that's what happened.
The $500,000 Woody Stephens Stakes (G1) presented by Mohegan Sun featured 9 three-year-olds sprinting 7 furlongs on the main track. Pat Day Mile (G2) winner Crude Velocity was sent off as the 9-10 favorite over 4-1 second choice Englishman, second in the Pat Day Mile, and 7-1 third choice Obliteration, winner of the Chick Lang Stakes after finishing second in the Saudi Derby (G3).
Jockey Flavien Prat sent 10-1 fourth choice Solitude Dude to lead through fractions of 21.98 and 43.97 while pressed by Englishman and stalked by Crude Velocity. Turning for home Solitude Dude tired allowing Englishman to inherit the lead through 3/4 in 1:07.56. Kept to task by Jose Ortiz, Englishman drew off to win by 5 3/4 lengths over Crude Velocity in a new track record 1:20.40. It was a nose back to Obliteration third.
Full results chart
Englishman heads back to the barn after the race. Winning trainer Cherie DeVaux said, "This horse is so fast that we kind of get a glimpse of it when he runs. He runs like that and almost broke the track record at Fair Grounds wrapped up, so the sky is the limit for him right now, but I believe that's at six and seven furlongs. I do believe in the right situation and set-up, we could run a mile. I think he's most effective at this distance, but in his last race, he just never got a chance to breathe. I think that was what really made the difference today."
Kicking off the Saturday stakes action was the $500,000 Just a Game Stakes (G1) presented by Resolute Racing with a field of 8 older fillies and mares going 1 mile on the inner turf. Jenny Wiley (G1) winner Segesta was sent off as the 9-5 favorite over 5-2 second choice Mandanaba, winner of the Prix Maurice Zilber and 4-1 third choice Sandtrap off an allowance win after a year long layoff.
Jockey John Velazquez sent 6-1 fourth choice Classic Q to the lead first time by through fractions of 23.62, 47.17, and 1:10.09 while pressed by Segesta and stalked by Mandanaba. Turning for home Classic Q continued to lead through 7f in 1:21.27, and cruised the rest of the way to win by 1 1/4 lengths over Mandanaba in 1:32.84. It was another 1/2 length back to favorite Segesta third.
Full results chart
Classic Q heads to the winner's circle. Winning jockey John Velazquez said, "That trip was about what we expected. I was expecting that she'd break well, that she'd be on the lead. I tried to save her the best I could, so I'd have something left to ask for. It is nice when it works out that way. She had a good finish, but that's what we were expecting out of her."
The $500,000 Jaipur Stakes (G1) featured a field of 10 older horses sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs on the Mellon turf looking for automatic entry into the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint. Shakertown (G2) winner and Twin Spires Turf Sprint (G2) 4th place finisher My Boy Prince was sent off as the 3-1 favorite over 4-1 second choice Ag Bullet, 3rd in the Matriarch (G1) after finishing second in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1), and 5-1 third choice Reef Runner, 4th in the Al Quoz Sprint (G1) after winning the 1351 Turf Sprint (G2).
Jockey Kendrick Carmouche sent 6-1 John the Beer Man to lead through an opening quarter of 21.19 while pressed by Ag Bullet and stalked by Reef Runner. Into the stretch Ag Bullet gained a short lead through a half in 43.13 and 5f in 54.27 before Reef Runner under Irad Ortiz Jr. came out 4 wide and rallied to win by 1/2 a length over Ag Bullet in 1:00.02. It was a neck back to John the Beer Man third, while favorite My Boy Prince checked in 5th beaten 2 1/4 lengths.
Full results chart
Reef Runner heads to the winner's circle. Winning trainer David Fawkes said, "Irad [Ortiz, Jr.] said that when he broke, the race was over. He was on the bridle and ready to roll. We're going to point to the Breeders' Cup and hope for good weather, like this. We got so lucky. I've been sweating all week. I was watching the radar. It was spitting a little bit earlier, which was fine. I just didn't want it to be like Dubai."
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