Take a look into Hill Road's past performances, jockey, trainer, Belmont Stakes odds and full analysis heading into the third leg of the Triple Crown.
Few trainers are more adept than Chad Brown at developing European imports, particularly those who begin their careers on turf. Hill Road followed that familiar path—starting off in Ireland under trainer Adrian Murray with two turf efforts before being pointed to the dirt for the 2024 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) at Del Mar.
His U.S. debut was ambitious, and though the 61-1 longshot didn't make headlines, he certainly made an impression. Hill Road rallied from 10th to finish third, 4¾ lengths behind front-running winner Citizen Bull. Trailing by 10 lengths after six furlongs, he closed with determination on a track favoring speed and finished two lengths ahead of stablemate Chancer McPatrick—another promising closer trained by Brown.
Following that performance, Amo Racing transferred Hill Road to Chad Brown. In his first start for the new barn, he ran a respectable third in the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby, finishing 6¼ lengths behind Owen Almighty, who dominated with a gate-to-wire trip.
Then came his breakout in the Grade 3 Peter Pan Stakes at Aqueduct. Stretching out to 1 1/8 miles, Hill Road uncorked a late rally to reel in McAfee in the final furlong, winning by three-quarters of a length. While exact sectionals weren’t published, his visual acceleration in the final three furlongs was notable, suggesting untapped stamina and progression.
Despite a few quirks—he stumbled slightly at the start and again didn’t switch leads in the lane—Brown was pleased with the effort and immediately pointed Hill Road to the 1¼-mile Belmont Stakes (G1).
“He came out of the Peter Pan in great shape,” Brown said. “We still need to clean up his lead change, but I thought he ran fantastic. I really believe a mile and a quarter is what he’s been wanting all along.”
Hill Road will make a big class jump in the Belmont, so don’t take a short price. He’ll need a solid pace to chase, but if he gets it, he could be right there at the finish.
Notes: Hill Road definitely has distance in his genes. His grandsire Lemon Drop Kid won the 1999 Belmont (at 1½ miles). Brown has 19 Breeders’ Cup trophies but only two in the Triple Crown series – Preakness wins in 2017 and 2022. Hill Road breezed 4 furlongs in 0:48.25 seconds over Belmont Park’s training track May 24 in his first workout since the Peter Pan.
The writing team at US Racing is comprised of both full-time and part-time contributors with expertise in various aspects of the Sport of Kings.
