Once again attentions will be turned towards New York for this weekend’s Belmont’s ‘Big A’ Meeting. Held at Belmont due to the renovations at Aqueduct, there are three big races that headline the weekend card. Arguably the most important race of the weekend is the G3 The Futurity Stakes, where not only will the winner bag a prestigious prize, but they will also receive an entry into the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint. The other two headline races of the weekend are the G2 Beldame Stakes and G3 Knickerbocker Stakes.
Here is everything you need to know!
The Futurity Stakes
Grade 3, 6 furlongs, turf race, open to horses who are aged two. Total prize pool $150,000. Winner qualifies for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint.
Headlining the racing action this Sunday is The Futurity Stakes. At the time of writing eight horses have been declared and it looks an interesting betting heat.
Bagging the inside rail is the Kelsey Danner trained Dunedin. A winner last time out in Allowance company, Dunedin is unproven at this level but does head into the contest in a rich vein of form. As long as he can maintain his pitch he has a good chance of success.
Manny Franco takes the ride on Nagirroc but it does look like he has a lot to prove if he is to win at this level and this represents a big step up in class.
Inflation Nation is another horse that will head to Belmont off the back of a victory last time out in Maiden company. This represents a big step up in form and grade, but could be a consideration at a price.
Vacation Dance for John Kimmel will be ridden by Javier Castellano. He arrives at the Futurity as one of the most intriguing horses in the race. A winner first time out, his victory was achieved in a tidy fashion. Whilst this represents a huge hike in class, with improvement on the cards he could be one to take seriously.
Power Attack is likely to start as one of the outsiders in the field. Yet to taste success in his career, he finished second last time out in the Tyro Stakes. That was raced over five furlongs and a return to six furlongs will hopefully see him in a better light.
Michael Maker runs two in the field – Bourbon Therapy and Gaslight Dancer.
This will only be Bourbon Therapy’s second run for Maker and connections will be hopeful that this performance will end up being much more successful than his first. A fourth place finish in Listed company last time out, does represent some of the best form in the race, but he does look potentially vulnerable to any improvers.
Gaslight Dancer could be Maker’s best chance. A one time runner, his maiden victory was certainly impressive. With improvement on the cards he could be a horse to side with here.
Determined Jester rounds out the field and will line up on the outside. He will most likely be an outsider in the betting following his third place finish on debut. This could be another tough race for him here.
| HORSE | JOCKEY | HORSE RACING ODDS BY JAZZSPORTS |
| Dunedin | Joseph Rocco, Jr. | +800 |
| Nagirroc | Manuel Franco | +250 |
| Inflation Nation (IRE) | Jose L. Ortiz | +300 |
| Vacation Dance | Javier Castellano | +1200 |
| Power Attack | Kendrick Carmouche | +800 |
| Bourbon Therapy | Eric Cancel | +2000 |
| Gaslight Dancer | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | +300 |
| Determined Jester | Forest Boyce | +600 |
2022 The Futurity Stakes Betting Prediction
In what could be a fascinating race, we will take a chance on Gaslight Dancer. Impressive on debut, he could be a horse to really keep an eye on.
Beldame Stakes
Grade 2, 1 mile and an eighth, Dirt, open to horses aged three and over. Total prize pool $250,000
Although there is no Breeders’ Cup qualifying place up for grabs with a victory in the Beldame Stakes, it is still a great race and five classy runners will be trying to add their names to the impressive list of past winners.
Drawn on the inside, the likely favourite for the race is bound to be Nest. Representing the impressive duo of Todd Pletcher and Irad Ortiz, connections will be hoping that this race keeps her primed ahead of bigger challenges to come.
A classy operator, she has won her last two starts at Grade 1 level and should find this level of race easy to handle. She is certainly the one to beat.
Drawn alongside Nest is the Claude McGaughey trained First To Act. A winner of two of her four starts this season, she will have to produce a clear lifetime best if he she is to emerge victorious in this race. Likely to be one of the outsiders in the field, it looks like she has a lot on her plate here and is probably best watched.
Starting in gate number three is Hybrid Eclipse who will be ridden by Manny Franco and represents the Brittany Russell yard. He heads into the contest following a victory last time out in Graded company and although not in the same sort of class as Nest he could keep the favourite honest over the extended mile. If you are looking to take the favourite on, he could be a viable contender.
The Grass is Blue came second in the race that was won by Hybrid Eclipse. The Grass is Blue has regularly switched hands and now finds himself in the care of H. Graham Motion. With two wins in his last six contests something special will be needed if he is to come out on top against a horse like Nest and reverse the form with Hybrid Eclipse.
Travel Column for Bill Mott and Javier Castellano rounds out the five runner field and is likely to give Nest the most to think about. The only other proven Grade 1 performer, he is yet to win at the top level but does have victories in both Grade 2 and Grade 3 classes. For any forecast bets it could be that Travel Column is the most likely horse to fill that second position behind Nest.
| HORSE | JOCKEY | HORSE RACING ODDS BY JAZZSPORTS |
| Nest | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | -500 |
| First to Act | Jose L. Ortiz | +400 |
| Hybrid Eclipse | Manuel Franco | +2000 |
| The Grass Is Blue | Jevian Toledo | +2000 |
| Travel Column | Javier Castellano | +600 |
Beldame Stakes Betting Pick
In order to keep her fresh for the Breeders’ Cup where she will be one of the favourites for the Distaff, both her trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey Javier Castellano will hope Nest comes through the contest unscathed. Despite taking on male horses, she should have far too much quality for this field.
Knickerbocker Stakes
Grade 3, turf, 1 mile and an eighth, open to horses aged three and over. Total prize pool $150,000
The penultimate race on this action packed Sunday card comes in the form of the Knickerbocker Stakes. A turf race, ten horses have currently been declared but that number could well change depending on the weather over the next few days.
When it comes to American turf racing you can be sure that Chad Brown will have at least one entrant and in this year’s contest he will have almost a third of the field with three entrants.
Brown has won the last two renewals of the race and his best chance for a third victory might be with Public Sector. Irad Ortiz takes the ride which is a sign of where Brown’s main hopes may lie. A prolific graded winner last year, things have been tougher this season with Public Sector only being able to record three third place finishes. If everything goes to plan, Public Sector can easily win a race of this calibre, but it remains to be seen whether he can piece it altogether.
Brown’s second runner L’Imperator has to be widely considered. He could only finish seventh in this contest last year, but since then has gone onto win at Grade 2 level. Clearly in great form, he will be looking to serve it up to his stablemates and will be a clear danger to all.
The last of Brown’s runners will be Lonesome Fugitive. The long shot of Brown’s trio of runners, this will be his first appearance in a Graded contest and he certainly looks to have a lot on his plate here.
Outside of Brown’s runners there is certainly value to be found wherever you look. Pao Alto for the H. Graham Motion yard looks to have a strong chance.
Formerly trained in France, Pao Alto is an international winner and tasted succes in Dubai earlier this year. He has only had one run since moving to the States and although he didn’t win, that run was full of promise. An impressive speed figure was posted in that race and he is one of the leading contenders here.
Michael Maker runs two in this year’s renewal and will be represented by Field Pass and King Cause.
Field Pass is a multiple graded winner and came second in this race last year. A front runner, Field Pass will look to set the fractions and hope that he can judge it just right off the front. If he does, he could take some pegging back.
King Cause also arrives with a live chance. The oldest horse in the race, he brings some rock solid one mile form to the contest. Whether he has the class to last home the extended trip or beat some top younger horses remains to be seen.
Godolphin horses have to be respected whenever they run and the world famous stable run Pixelate here. This will only be his third start of the season and his previous two runs haven’t quite gone to plan. At a big price he could run a big race but might be best watched.
Safe Conduct is another who heads into the race as an outsider. A previous graded winner, things haven’t quite gone to plan this season and he will hope to build on his 5th place finish last time out.
Two horses who will fancy their chances are the duo of Eons and Dyno Drive. Both have won at this level previously and know that a big performance could see them land back in the winner’s circle.
| HORSE | JOCKEY | HORSE RACING ODDS BY JAZZSPORTS |
| Lonesome Fugitive (IRE) | Javier Castellano | +1200 |
| Eons | Trevor McCarthy | +1500 |
| Dynadrive | Eric Cancel | +600 |
| King Cause | Kendrick Carmouche | +1000 |
| L’Imperator (FR) | Manuel Franco | +450 |
| Pixelate | Jose L. Ortiz | +800 |
| Field Pass | Jose Antonio Gomez | +1200 |
| Pao Alto (FR) | Jevian Toledo | +400 |
| Safe Conduct | Jose Lezcano | +800 |
| Public Sector (GB) | Irad Ortiz, Jr | +350 |
Knickerbocker Stakes Betting Pick
With Chad Brown having such a good record in the race it’s hard to look past his trio of runners, however Pao Alto looks to have form that will rival the very best on offer and a big run is certainly expected. He is likely to be a good price and is our selection in what could be a great race to round off the card.
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