2026 Belmont Stakes Moves to Saratoga for Final Year

The 2026 Belmont Stakes, the final leg of Thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown, will be run on Saturday, June 6, at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. For the third consecutive year, the race is being held at the historic upstate track while its traditional home, Belmont Park in Elmont, undergoes renovations. This is expected to be the final time Saratoga hosts the event before the series returns to the renovated Belmont in 2027.

The race will feature a field of nine three-year-olds and will be contested at a distance of 1 1/4 miles, a quarter-mile shorter than the Belmont's traditional 1 1/2-mile "Test of the Champion," due to Saratoga's smaller track circumference. The purse is $2 million, with $1.2 million going to the winner.

The field is headlined by Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo, who skipped the Preakness Stakes to prepare for this race. Despite his Derby victory as a longshot, Golden Tempo is listed as the morning-line third choice at 9-2. The betting favorite is Renegade at 2-1, who finished a close second to Golden Tempo at Churchill Downs after a troubled trip where he was forced far back in the 18-horse field before rallying to lose by a neck.