For the past quarter-century, whenever the Belmont Stakes rolls around, it’s virtually certain Todd Pletcher will be saddling up a 3-year-old. Or two. Or more!
In Saturday’s $2 million Belmont Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course, Pletcher sends out 2-1 morning-favorite Renegade and 12-1 longshot Powershift in a field of nine that includes Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Golden Tempo.
The Hall of Famer knows the drill, even if the race is run over 1 ¼ miles at the Spa rather than the traditional 1 ½ miles at Belmont Park (the new Belmont is set to reopen in the fall after a three-year rebuild).
This will be the 23rd Belmont for Pletcher, which would move him one ahead of his mentor, the late D. Wayne Lukas, and into first place for most Belmonts among modern-day trainers (1964-current).
Not only that, Pletcher will be sending out his 43rd and 44th Belmont starters, the most among modern-day trainers.
As for winning, Pletcher is seeking a fifth Belmont victory, which would move him into a fourth-place tie with Woody Stephens, who won the race five years in a row from 1982 to 1986.
| 2026 Belmont Stakes Odds | ||
| Official post positions set following the post-position draw on Monday, June 1, 2026. | ||
| PP | Horse / Trainer | Morning Line |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vitruvian ManAntonio Fresu · D. O'Neill | 30/1 |
| 2 | PowershiftLuis Saez · T. Pletcher | 12/1 |
| 3 | Chief WallabeeJunior Alvarado · W. Mott | 3/1 |
| 4 | RenegadeIrad Ortiz Jr. · T. Pletcher | 2/1 |
| 5 | OttinhoDylan Davis · C. Brown | 20/1 |
| 6 | Growth EquityManny Franco · C. Brown | 12/1 |
| 7 | CommandmentJohn Velazquez · B. Cox | 6/1 |
| 8 | Emerging MarketFlavien Prat · C. Brown | 6/1 |
| 9 | Golden TempoJose Ortiz · C. DeVaux | 9/2 |
Last Updated on 06/01/2026
Taking on the Derby winner again in the Belmont is nothing new for Pletcher. Two of his Belmont winners (Palace Malice in 2013 and Mo Donegal in 2022) did not fare well in the Derby, skipped the Preakness, and ended up beating the Derby winner in the final leg of the Triple Crown.
“That’s what you hope for in these Triple Crown races, a chance to hopefully turn the tables,” Pletcher said this week.
Pletcher, 58, is among the dominant trainers over the past 25 years, following in the footsteps of his mentor Lukas and winning just about every big race in the country. His decision whether to send one of his elite 3-year-olds out for a 1 ½-mile race marathon -- the longest distance a horse will ever run -- is a testament to his training talents (the Belmont at Saratoga has been run at 1 ¼ miles).
He also has a home-track advantage, as Belmont Park is his base of operations, and no one knows the racing surfaces at Belmont and Saratoga better than Pletcher. This is a major reason why he chooses his Belmont runners wisely since they train on the track so often.
Pletcher’s first win in a Triple Crown race came in the 2007 Belmont – in historic fashion. Rags to Riches held off Curlin in a thrilling finish to become the first filly to win the race in 103 years.
He also won the Belmont in 2013 with 13-1 longshot Palace Malice (one of Pletcher’s five entries), in 2017 with Tapwrit (5-1) and in 2022 with Mo Donegal (the 5-2 favorite).
Since he first sent out Impeachment in 2000 – the colt ran fifth – Pletcher has only missed the Belmont three times, in 2002, 2003, and 2012.
It hasn’t been all white carnations for Pletcher -- he’s finished second nine times, including four since 2020, and third four times. Recent runners-up were Dr. Post in 2020, Nest in 2022 (he lost to stablemate Mo Donegal), Forte in 2023, and Mindframe in 2024.
Pletcher is an eight-time Eclipse Award winner as the nation’s top trainer, is closing in on 6,000 career victories (many of them at Belmont and Saratoga), and has two Kentucky Derby wins (Super Saver in 2010 and Always Dreaming in 2017) and 16 Breeders’ Cup victories.
Here’s a brief recap of Pletcher’s four Belmont victories, all at 1 ½ miles at Belmont Park.
Once Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense was declared out of the Belmont Stakes, Pletcher stepped up with Rags to Riches, racing’s top 3-year-old filly and winner of the Kentucky Oaks (G1). Five days before the Belmont, Pletcher was all in with Rags to Riches (John Velazquez aboard), who defeated males and subsequent Horse of the Year Curlin to become the first filly in over 100 years to win the “Test of the Champion.”
The stretch duel between Curlin and Rags to Riches was a doozy. Here’s how track announcer Tom Durkin called it:
“And at the top of the stretch, a filly is in front at the Belmont. But Curlin is right there with her. These two are in a battle of the sexes in the Belmont Stakes. It is Curlin on the inside, Rags to Riches on the outside. A desperate finish! Rags to Riches and Curlin! They’re coming down to the wire! It’s going to be very close! And it’s going to be ... a filly in the Belmont! Rags to Riches has beaten Curlin and a hundred years of Belmont history! The first filly to win it in over a century!”
Pletcher often mentions this first win in a Triple Crown race as his “sweetest victory.”
After a 12th-place finish in the Derby, Palace Malice did not run in the Preakness two weeks later as Pletcher prepped him for the Belmont. His patience paid off as 13-1 longshot Palace Malice, with Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith aboard, surged to the lead and drew away in the stretch for a 3 ¼-length victory. Footnote: Pletcher sent out five of the 14 starters. The others were Revolutionary (fifth), Unlimited Budget (sixth), Overanalyze (seventh), and Midnight Taboo (12th).
Four years later, Pletcher used a similar game plan to take advantage of the 1 ½-mile oval at Belmont. After Tapwrit ran sixth in the Derby, he was held out of the Preakness. Ridden by Jose Ortiz, Tapwrit raced just off the pace before making his decisive move at the top of the stretch. He tracked down Irish War Cry inside the final furlong, the two bumping a bit, and won by two lengths at 5-1 odds.
In 2022, the same pattern: Mo Donegal ran fifth in the Derby, skipped the Preakness to train up to the Belmont. Sent off as the 5-2 favorite with Irad Ortiz, Jr., aboard, Mo Donegal raced along the rail, swung wide into the stretch, and drew off for a three-length victory over stablemate Nest.
Richard Rosenblatt is an award-winning journalist and former Associated Press Horse Racing Editor. Currently, he serves as the news editor at US Racing, overseeing exclusive content from contributors worldwide.
