For diehard Belmont Park bettors, as well as plain old racing fans, the day is near, and the field is set for the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) on Friday's opening day after a three-year reconstruction.
While the new racetrack is the main attraction, Japan's star Forever Young is the equine star – the expected favorite in the race that awards the winner a fees-paid berth in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) next month at Keeneland.
A field of seven was entered Sunday for the 1 ¼-mile Jockey Club Gold Cup, one of the most prestigious races for older horses. Forever Young, trained by Yoshit Yahagi, drew the outside post 7. Morning-line odds will be announced in the next few days.
Sovereignty, the 2025 Horse of the Year, was set to take on Forever Young, but developed a foot abscess and will miss the race. The two champs have never met, but they could in the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Oct. 31.
First post for the nine-race card is 1:30 p.m. ET. The Jockey Club Gold Cup is race 5, set for a 4:14 p.m. ET post. The race will be televised by Fox Sports.
Challenging the 5-year-old with earnings of more than $31.7 million are Baeza and Stars and Stripes for Bill Mott, who also trains Sovereignty, Phileas Fogg, Chunk of Gold, Banishing and Render Judgment.
Forever Young, winner of last year's Breeders’ Cup Classic, won the Saudi Cup (G1) in February and finished second – a length behind Magnitude -- in the Dubai World Cup (G1) in March; these are his two starts in 2026.
"I am delighted to be able to compete in the United States again with Forever Young, following our participation over the past two years,” Yahagi said. “It is also a great honor to run in New York at this very memorable time, coinciding with the reopening of the historic Belmont Park racetrack. Through these two races, the Jockey Gold Cup and the Breeders' Cup Classic at Keeneland, I hope to contribute to the further development of American horse racing."
Phileas Fogg is 3-for-4 at 1¼ miles, including a pair of wins in the Suburban Stakes (G2) at Saratoga in 2025-26.
Mott's pair will try to give the Hall of Fame trainer a fifth JCGC win. Junior Alvarado will be aboard Baeza, who was fourth in the Whitney Stakes (G1) last out. Banishing, trained by David Jacobson, was runner-up to Willy D's in the Charles Town Classic (G2) on Aug. 28. Chunk of Gold was supplemented to the race and ran second to Bishop's Bays in the Philip H. Iselin Stakes (G3) on Aug. 15.
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.
