The 157th Belmont Stakes was run in Saratoga Springs Saturday. It marked the second year in a row that the third leg of the Triple Crown was run upstate. While thousands of fans descended upon the Spa City for a week of racing rains put a damper on the celebration.
With Saturday morning’s torrential rains saturating the Saratoga Race Course, Brian Callery was one of a few brave souls out early to reserve his picnic table ahead of the running of the 157th Belmont Stakes.
In town with his family from Lowell, Massachusetts, for the Belmont Racing Festival, which began Wednesday, Callery said he wasn’t going to let wet weather stop him from enjoying Saturday’s marquee race.
“I’ve just kind of map it out when was going to rain just bring a couple extra shirts, a couple extra pairs of socks. You really can’t complain when you’re at Saratoga. If you’re wet, you’re wet. If you’re not, it is what it is, you know what I mean,” said Callery.
He’s been coming to Saratoga Race Course since he was 6. And after missing last year’s Belmont, he wanted to make sure he was among the tens of thousands of racing rans who weathered the elements to watch the Test of the Champion. The Belmont is being run upstate while its downstate home undergoes a half-billion-dollar renovation.
The New York Racing Association has not confirmed where the Triple Crown will conclude in 2026.
“I bought my ticket a couple months ago and my dad’s wife actually lives up here, so I made sure she was going to be home and everything was lined up and I told my boss I was taking off early yesterday from work,” said Callery.
By day’s end, racing fans were treated to sunny skies and a thrilling finish as the Belmont Stakes mirrored this year’s Kentucky Derby. Sovereignty once again beat out Preakness Stakes winner Journalism down the stretch.
Fans endured about 2 inches of weekend rain before skies cleared around 4 p.m. ahead of the 7:04 post time.
And the falling rain no doubt held down attendance and betting figures. This year’s Belmont welcomed more than 46,000 paid attendees, compared to last year’s more than 50,000. And the 2025 all-sources handle exceeded $100 million, coming up well short of last year’s record-breaking $125 million handle, according to NYRA.
Still, the tens of thousands on hand were treated to an exciting day of racing.
Phillip Cell set up his lawn chair just steps away from the track. He was wearing a straw hat adorned with dozens of racing pins he’s collected over the past four decades.
“With FanDuel you’re starting to get into sports gambling a little bit, you get into the props. You know with horse racing it’s more about handicapping. I had Indiana [Pacers] the first game with OKC [Oklahoma City Thunder]. But horse racing has been a big part of my life. First time I went to the track I was 12 years old with my grandfather. Yonkers Raceway. But, when they run Belmont at Belmont for the stakes you pay $20 to get in. So, I don’t know why the ticket’s $100 dollars,” said Cell.
Kathleen Kenneally was dressed in a bright yellow dress with a horseshoe button made of pearls and a hat made of billowing white pheasant feathers. It was all under wraps, though, until the clouds broke.
“This isn’t makeshift, this is something that’s a bit of a trend going around. It’s embarrassing to say, but these can be bought online at Amazon, and they’re actually ‘pedi liners.’ So, when you get a pedicure these bags line the tub,” said Kenneally said.
Still, she was enjoying her first time at Saratoga Race Course.
“So, I always go to Belmont outside of New York City. In Philadelphia it’s such a quick train ride and it’s a great weekend in the city. Last year I couldn’t make it and this year I said, ‘I have to see this racetrack.’ Everyone tells me it’s the most beautiful in the country and I think it is,” said Kenneally.
When the sun poked through, the committed few, while damp, basked in the glory of a hard-earned backstretch table.
Given Sovereignty’s win after skipping the Preakness, fans will never know if they could have been treated to a Triple Crown victory. Trainer Bill Mott stood by the decision after winning the Belmont at the adapted mile-and-a-quarter, not the regular mile-and-a-half length downstate.
“If it’s wrong you bite the bullet and in this case I don’t think it was wrong. I think it was the right thing. I’m happy with having a [Kentucky] Derby and Belmont and maybe a future to look forward to. I’d love to come back and take a crack at the Travers in August. It’s a race I’ve never won but I think it’s a very important race,” said Mott.
Some racing fans like Chris Larrabee were left wondering what might have been.
“Yeah, obviously you want to do what’s safe for the horses first and foremost like anything. But it’s a tough look for horse racing because what it says is that the [Kentucky] Derby winner can take that time off and come down and race in the Belmont. It’s unfortunate but you know maybe horse racing will take a look at lengthening it out a little bit which I think is a great race,” said Larrabee.
