Belmont Stakes to be Run on June 20th

After the Kentucky Derby was rescheduled for September 5th and the Preakness to October 3rd, we figured the Belmont Stakes would be run sometime in the second half of October, to keep the traditional order of horse racing’s triple crown races. As it is with everything in the sports world these days due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the old order is out, at least for this year.

The Belmont Stakes, originally scheduled for June 6th, will be run two weeks later on June 20th, as the first race in the triple crown. The race has been shortened from 1 1/2 miles to 1 1/8 miles The last time the race was less than 1 1/2 miles was in 1925 at 1 3/8 miles. It was last run at 1 1/8 miles in 1894. The Belmont will also be run without fans in the stands.

Racing officials didn’t want to run in late October, as it would have been too close to the Breeder’s Cup on November 6th and 7th. Racing at Belmont will actually begin June 3rd, and other tracks across the country are beginning to reopen with no fans or limited capacity at the tracks.

Here’s last year’s Belmont Stakes, won by Sir Winston: