The first Belmont in the United States was not the
famous stakes race or even the man for whom it is named.
Rather, the first Belmont was a race horse that arrived
in California in 1853 from his breeding grounds of
Franklin, Ohio. The Belmont Stakes, however, are named
after August Belmont, a financier who made quite a name
and fortune for himself in New York politics and
society. Obviously, Mr. Belmont was also quite involved
in horse racing, and his imprint is even intertwined
within the history of the Kentucky Derby Betting.
Because of its length (one
lap around the enormous Belmont main track),
and because it is the final race of the Triple Crown Horse Betting, it
is called the "Test of the Champion". Most
three-year-olds are unaccustomed to the distance, and
lack the experience, if not the ability, to maintain a
winning speed for so long. In a long race such as the
Belmont, positioning of the horse and the timing of the
move to chase for the lead can be critical.
Because of its distance and status as the race that can
make or break a Triple Crown champion, the Belmont
Stakes has been the venue for some of the most famous
moments in American racing.
More Belmont Stakes and
Belmont Stakes Contenders
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2010 Belmont Stakes
Winner
Drosselmeyer pulled off an upset in the Belmont Stakes, seizing the lead in the stretch and giving Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott his first win in a Triple Crown race.
It was the first Belmont win in his 13th attempt for fellow Hall of Famer Smith, who guided the son of Distorted Humor to a three-quarters of a length score for his first stakes victory. The final time for the 1 1/2-mile third leg of the Triple Crown was 2:31.57 over a fast track. A crowd of 45,243 came out on a hot, steamy day in Elmont, N.Y., to watch the 142nd running of the race. |
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2009 Belmont Stakes
Winner
The winner of the 2009 Belmont Stakes is Summer Bird. Mine That Bird was the favorite to win the race and came in third.
Jockey Kent Desormeaux, who finished second twice before at the Belmont Stakes, wins the 2009 Belmont Stakes riding Summer Bird. The other bird, Mine That Bird, hung back for most of the race and then made an early move — maybe a bit too early — to push for the lead but ended up taking third place and still in the money. Dunkirk finished in second place. |
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2008 Belmont Stakes
Winner Da’
Tara wins the $1 million Belmont Stakes on Saturday,
June 7, at Belmont Park and foiled Big Brown’s
attempt at becoming the 12th Triple Crown winner.
Trained by Nick Zito for Robert LaPenta, Da’ Tara
covered 1 1/2 miles in 2:29.65 and paid $79, $28 and
$14.80. Five lengths behind is Denis of Cork with
jockey Robby Albarado aboard returned $5.40 and
$4.10. Anak Nakal, under jockey Julien Leparoux, and
Ready’s Echo, under jockey John Velazquez,
dead-heated for third and showed $7.60 and $6.20
respectively. |
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2007 Belmont Stakes
Winner Before
a crowd of 46,870 under overcast skies at Belmont
Park, Rags to Riches lived up to her breeding and
out-gamed favored Curlin by a head to become the
first filly to win the Belmont Stakes in 102 years
and only the third Belmont Stakes winning filly. The
previous winning fillies were Ruthless in 1867 and
Tanya in 1905. Nineteen other fillies had previously
run in the Belmont Stakes. With John Velazquez as
her rider for the first time, Rags to Riches also
gave trainer Todd Pletcher his first win in a Triple
Crown race. Rags to Riches completed the mile and a
half trip in 2:28.74 and paid her backers $10.60 to
win. |
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