The Belmont Stakes at Saratoga – Where A Woman Rules!

This was the third and final year that the Belmont Stakes was run at the Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Springs, NY while Belmont Park in Elmont, NY, finished its renovations.

It was a huge day for trainer Cherie DeVaux as her trainee, Golden Tempo, who won the Kentucky Derby, also captures the Belmont Stakes. This makes the Saratoga native the first woman to capture two legs of the Triple Crown and only the second female trainer to win the Belmont Stakes. The first woman to win a Triple Crown race was Jena Antonucci when she trained Archangelo to score a victory in the 2023 Belmont Stakes.

Golden Tempo was masterfully ridden by Jose Ortiz, coming from the back of the field late to overcome Commandment and the favorite Renegade, ridden by Jose’s brother Irad Ortiz Jr.

Due to the change of venue, the Belmont Stakes was run at 1 ¼ miles but the “Test of Champions” will return to its 1 ½ mile distance next year when it returns to Belmont Park.

Golden Tempo is owned by the Phipps Stable and Vincent Viola’s St. Elias Stable.

St. Elias Stable also had a great day, winning the Grade 1 Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes with Deterministic.

The Hill ‘N’ Dale Metropolitan Mile, known fondly as the “Met Mile,” was won by Nysos, who finished the time in 1:34.85, only a tick off the track record of 1:34.72 set by Key Contender in 1992. Nysos beat Knightsbridge and the former Preakness Stakes winner Journalism, who finished third.

Cherie DeVaux has another superstar in her barn as Englishman won the Woody Stephens Stakes by 5 ½ lengths, tying the time set by Darby Creek Road in 1978.

The event drew a tremendous crowd and we had the opportunity to meet people like actor Bo Dietl, the famed former NYPD detective turned actor who starred in movies including The Englishman, Goodfellas and The Wolf of Wall Street. His autobiography One Tough Cop was turned into a movie starring Stephen Baldwin.

Former Major League Baseball player Jayson Werth, who won the World Series in 2008 while he was with the Philadelphia Phillies, enjoyed the races with his friends and fans. Werth jumped onto the racing scene when he became involved with the partnership in the horse Dornoch, who won the 2024 Belmont Stakes.

The new Chair of the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, was also in attendance. The native of nearby Loudonville, NY, Warsh replaces Jerome Powell. There was no word from him about lowering interest rates!

Bruce Blakeman, who is running for Governor of New York State, was also present. Traditionally, the current Governor attends the Belmont Stakes and helps present the winner’s trophy but Kathy Hochul was noticeably absent.

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In addition to horse racing, we enjoyed the warm weather, nice people and fabulous fashion. The Saratoga racing meet begins on July 3th and runs through September 6th, 2026.

All photos courtesy of EIE Editorial, © 2026, all rights reserved

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