Horse Racing Star Power on Display Belmont Stakes Weekend

In a sport that’s often criticized for lacking star-power, look no further than Elmont, New York. The skies have cleared for a weekend of excellent racecing ahead of the 155th running of the Belmont Stakes.

Impressive Fillies

The action on the enormous track has already begun. The first big name into the gate is this year’s Kentucky Oaks winner, Pretty Mischievous (2-1). Racing for the first time since wearing the garland of lilies, she’ll be asked to go 8.5 furlongs in the Acorn Stakes. Munnys Gold (9-5) is her top competition. Todd Pletcher’s horse finished second on Derby Day in the 8 Belles.

Horse players near and far have marveled at the depth of the Saturday card at Belmont Park. Nine of the 13 races on the card are stakes races, with the first one going off before 1 pm EST. It’s going to be a great day to pick ponies.

For the casual fans, the familiar names show up in race 7. D. Wayne Luke is looking to give last year’s Kentucky Oaks winner, Secret Oath (2-1), some sweet revenge in the Ogden Phipps. One of the top fillies in her age division has lost by a neck in back-to-back races. The ones that beat her — Played Hard (6-1) and Clairiere (6-5) — will be in the field for the 1 1/16 miles Grade I.

Dominant Horses

Race 9 on Belmont Stakes Saturday is the Jaipur, a “Win and You’re In” race that will punch a horse’s ticket into the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. Turf sprinters don’t receive the same acclaim as those that go the distance or dirt runners, but make no mistake about it, Caravel (3-1) is a badass. Trained by Brad Cox, the horse has not lost since Tyler Gafflione was put on the mount four races ago, most recently picking up a win on Derby Day.

The following race is the prestigious Met Mile. The favorite in this year’s race is a Kentucky-bred horse that’s touched America’s heart, Cody’s Wish (7-5). Not only does the horse bring a heartwarming story to Belmont Park, Cody’s Wish has only lost twice in its 10 starts. The Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile Champ dominated the Churchill Downs on Derby day, but the competition is trickier this go around with former Kentucky Derby starters White Abarrio (10-1) and Zandon (5-1) in the field.

The Belmont Stakes

Absent Mage, who’s taking a much-needed break after falling in the Preakness, this year’s Belmont Stakes is featuring the best of the best in the three-year-old division.

Forte (5-2) is racing for the first time since the Kentucky Derby favorite was scratched on race day. In his absence, Angel of Empire (7-2) became the top choice and finished hard down the stretch to come in third. The extra distance might suit Brad Cox’s horse well. It could also be what Tapit Trice (3-1) needs. After all, the colt’s sire has produced four Belmont Stakes champions. He’s not the only Tapit horse in the race.

And how could I forget: the Preakness Champion will be in New York. Bob Baffert is returning to New York with National Treasure (5-1), who went wire-to-wire at Pimlico. The horse may have enough in the tank to do it again, or provide early speed to blow up the pace for a late closer.

Coverage of Belmont Stakes Saturday is from 4-7:30 pm on Fox.