Golden Tempo: Post 9; Morning Line: 5-2
Trainer: Cherie DeVaux; Jockey: Jose Ortiz
Monday, Aug. 24, 2026
Golden Tempo will run in the Travers off a 12-week layoff since adding a 1¼-length triumph in the Belmont Stakes (G1) to his Kentucky Derby (G1) win. Having all that time off wasn’t planned. A mild respiratory illness in late June interrupted his training and forced Cherie DeVaux to skip the Jim Dandy Stakes (G2) at Saratoga.
“That wasn’t really by design,” she said, “but it’s the hand that we’ve been dealt.”
In the past 20 years, Birdstone (2004) and Arcangelo (2023) have been the only Belmont winners to take the Travers without a race in between. So, it’s been done, and Golden Tempo proved his doubters wrong in the Derby and the Belmont. Those who believed in him cashed win tickets at odds of 23-1 and 6-1, respectively.
“I was a bit concerned about fitness, but in each of his works he hasn’t tired,” DeVaux told drf.com. “He’s held his fitness better than anticipated. He did lose some weight, he did lose some conditioning, but he's gotten all of it back.”
The dual-classic winner was very sharp on Aug. 15 while breezing 4 furlongs in 47.46 seconds, the fastest of 66 works that morning. On Aug. 22, in his final Travers tuneup, he went 4 furlongs in a leisurely :49 for Ortiz. DeVaux liked what she saw.
“He worked really well,” she said. “We were just trying to do something easy, and he looked great doing it, so we're happy with where he's at. He's so classy, so professional.”
His M.O. is going from last to first, and DeVaux and Ortiz won’t change his style. The Derby pace was fast, the Belmont fractions were moderate, and Golden Tempo adapted brilliantly to each.
You won’t get 6-1 on him this time, and despite DeVaux's upbeat comments, the layoff has to be a concern for bettors. However, the clear leader of the division is still the horse to beat.
-- By Ed McNamara
Ed McNamara is an award-winning racing writer who has covered the sport since 1981 for The Bergen (N.J.) Record, Newsday, ESPN, Thorocap, and USRacing. He is the author of Cajun Racing: From the Bush Tracks to the Triple Crown and Racing Around the World, and a contributor to The Most Glorious Crown and The Racetracks of America. He has also written for racing publications in France and Italy.
