The racing milestones of Belmont Stakes – The oldest race of the Triple Crown

Horse racing in America has a rich history and tradition of many centuries lined with several legendary racing events that have made the country proud.  Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes constitute the famous Triple Crown of horse racing that takes place over a 2 km or 11/4 mile stretch on a dirt track in Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky.  The same race covers 1.9 km or 13/16 mile in Pimlico race course, Baltimore, Maryland for Preakness Stakes. The Belmont Stakes race covers a longer distance of 2.4 km or 11/2 miles.  It is, therefore, a matter of great honor for horse racing aficionados to present at the Belmont Stakes in New York that has just crossed the 150th year landmark on June 9, 2018.

It is a dream come true for horse lovers to be at any of the venues of horse racing that are part of the Triple Crown. The attraction is much more for the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival of three days organized to commemorate the sesquicentennial year of the historic racing venue. The three-day festival culminated with the Belmont Stakes, and until 2017, the cost of the ticket was just $15. For more information, log on to TVG Now let us take a quick rundown of the major milestones of Belmont Stakes after every 50 years since its inception.

The first run – June 19, 1867

Belmont Stakes is the oldest race among the Triple Crown races as the initial edition preceded Preakness Stakes by 6 years and Kentucky Derby by 8 years. Jerome Park race track in the Bedford Park area of the Bronx was the first venue of Belmont Stakes that remained at the place until 1889.  Ruthless was the name of the three-year-old filly that won the first race that covered 1⁵/₈ miles in 3.05 minutes that fetched its owner’s prize money of $1850. The race owes its name to a prominent owner and breeder August Belmont.

The 50^th year of the run

Belmont Park that opened in 1905 was the venue of the race in the 50^th year on 15^th June 1918, and the race was like the inaugural edition as there were four contestants only. The 1³/₈-mile race belonged to John, an English bred a horse that won the race by two lengths against its closest rival Preakness Stakes winner War Cloud recording a time of 2:20²/₅ minutes thereby winning $8,700.

The centenary run

From 1964 to 1967 the Aqueduct Racetrack was home to Belmont Stakes as the Belmont Park was undergoing renovation. The beautiful Belmont Park re-opened on May 20, 1968, and hosted the centenary race of Belmont Stakes within a fortnight on June 1, 1968, that turned into one of the memorable editions. Coming two weeks after the Preakness Stakes, the 100^th Belmont Stakes winner was Greentree Stable’s Stage Door Johnny making its stakes debut got the better of the much-fancied Forward Pass. Socially and manually people really like horse racing games and enjoy every moment.

The 150^th year of Belmont Stakes in 2018 saw the tracks set on fire by the thoroughbred Justify that dominated the 1.5-mile track and finished that race convincingly much ahead of its nearest rival.