HorseCenter: Belmont Stakes contenders, Blame Stakes picks

By Brian Zipse and Matt Shifman
Photo:

This week on HorseCenter, your hosts Brian Zipse and Matt Shifman cover the top contenders for the final leg of the Triple Crown. The 2024 Belmont Stakes will be run at a distance of 1 1/4 miles next Saturday at Saratoga because Belmont Park is under renovation.

Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan and Preakness winner Seize the Grey are among the potential starters for the Belmont. The field of 3-year-olds also will include Sierra Leone and Fierceness, and those two should vie for favoritism. Sierra Leone was second by a nose in the Derby, and Fierceness will try to give Todd Pletcher his fifth victory in the Belmont.

Matt and Brian also handicap and give top picks for a deep edition of the Blame Stakes at Churchill Downs. A field of 11 older male runners features the probable favorites Tapit Trice, who was last seen finishing third in the Travers (G1), and Brad Cox trainee Highland Falls.

HorseCenter will be back next week featuring coverage of the Belmont racing festival at Saratoga. As always, thanks for watching the show.

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