#Bob Weir

There may not be as much fanfare for the 2021 Belmont Stakes with no Triple Crown up for grabs, but there will be a crowd, which will be a welcomed sight for race officials. Last year's event was held behind closed doors, but roughly 11000 spectators will be inside Belmont Park for the 6:49 p.m. ET post time on Saturday evening. The Belmont Stakes…

The oldest stakes race in the country for three-year-olds will have its 153rd running on Saturday when the 2022 Travers Stakes will take place at Saratoga Race Course. First held in 1864, this 1 1/4 miles race is nicknamed the Midsummer Derby and offers a $1.25 million prize to the winner. The 2022 Travers Stakes field is stacked with multiple…

After last year's Preakness Stakes was postponed to October due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2021 Preakness Stakes will return to its rightful spot on the third Saturday in May. Another change from last year will be the presence of spectators at Pimlico Race Course, with 10000 fans being admitted. That's still a far cry from the 51838 who…

A spot in the Kentucky Derby 2022 will be on the line when 11 three-year-olds leave the starting gate in the 2022 Rebel Stakes on Saturday at Oaklawn Park. The winner of the $1 million Rebel Stakes 2022 will receive 50 qualifying points towards the Kentucky Derby, all but guaranteeing himself a spot in the Run for the Roses on May 7. Trainer Bob…

Saturday marks the 147th edition of the Run for the Roses, and there is plenty of history that could be made in the 2021 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. Louisville-born trainer Brad Cox will send out Essential Quality and Mandaloun in his first Derby appearance, as he seeks to become the first local trainer to win horse racing's biggest prize.…

A field of nine lightly raced three-year-old horses will try to take a step towards the 2022 Kentucky Derby when the starting gate opens on Saturday in the 2022 Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park. The Todd Pletcher-trained Mo Donegal is the 5-2 favorite in the 2022 Holy Bull Stakes odds. The Dale Romans-trained Giant Game is getting 7-2 in the…

The Chad Brown-trained Shantisara begins what her trainer hopes will be an Eclipse Award-winning season when she leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Jenny Wiley Stakes on Saturday at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky. A winner of five races in nine career starts, Shantisara makes the first start of her 4-year-old year. Brown says she's…

French-born and Japan-based jockey Christophe Lemaire will try to transfer his international success to the United States when he leaves the starting gate aboard Crown Pride in the 2022 Kentucky Derby on Saturday at Churchill Downs. The 42-year-old Lemaire has led all Japan Racing Association jockeys in wins for five straight years. On Saturday, he…

Two Hall of Fame trainers -- D. Wayne Lukas and Todd Pletcher -- can tie the record for most Kentucky Oaks wins by a trainer when the starting gate opens in the 2022 Kentucky Oaks on Friday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Both Lukas and Pletcher have won the Run for the Lilies four times, one shy of the record held by the great Woody…

A spot in the Breeders' Cup Classic will be on the line when six of the best older horses in the country leave the starting gate in the 2022 Whitney Stakes on Saturday at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. The race has attracted five horses who have won at least $988000, topped by the $5.2 million earned by Hot Rod Charlie. However, the…

Jockey Flavien Prat has one Kentucky Derby victory and one Preakness Stakes win on his resume, but he remains in search of a triumph in the third leg of the Triple Crown. The 29-year-old Frenchman came close to completing the hat trick last year with Hot Rod Charlie, who was 1 1/4 lengths behind Essential Quality for a runner-up finish. Prat will…

A strong contingent of European horses meets some of the best turf 3-year-olds from the United States when the starting gate opens in the 2022 Belmont Derby on Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. The European group is led by Stone Age and Nations Pride. Trained by Aidan O'Brien, Stone Age is the 9-2 morning-line favorite in the 2022 Belmont…

Trainer Todd Pletcher will try to set the all-time record for wins by a trainer in the Mother Goose Stakes when he sends out Shahama in the 2022 Mother Goose Stakes on Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. The 54-year-old Pletcher has won the race six times and is tied with his mentor, D. Wayne Lukas, for the most Mother Goose wins ever.…

A berth in the 2022 Kentucky Derby will be on the line when 12 horses leave the starting gate in the 2022 Tampa Bay Derby on Saturday at Tampa Bay Downs. The signature race of the 2021-22 season at Tampa Bay Downs, the Tampa Bay Derby 2022 awards 85 Derby qualification points to the top four finishers on a 50-20-10-5 basis, virtually guaranteeing…

Steve Asmussen can tie the record for most Louisiana Derby wins by a trainer when he sends out the favored Epicenter in the 2022 Louisiana Derby on Saturday. The 56-year-old Asmussen, the all-time winningest trainer in North American racing, has won the Louisiana Derby three times, one shy of Todd Pletcher's record of four. Asmussen has a strong…

The Christophe Clement-trained Gufo will try to win the race that barely eluded him last year when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Man o' War Stakes on Saturday at Belmont Park. A winner of more than $1.3 million in his career, Gufo lost by a nose to Channel Cat in last year's Man o' War. That defeat came after a four-month layoff. On…

A field of 11 three-year-olds will try to take the final step towards the Kentucky Derby when they leave the starting gate in the 2022 Florida Derby on Saturday at Gulfstream Park. Since the inaugural Florida Derby in 1952, 24 horses have won both the Florida Derby and Kentucky Derby, including Spectacular Bid in 1979. The Florida Derby 2022 has…

Friday at Churchill Downs is dedicated to the fillies, and the marquee race on the card is the 2021 Kentucky Oaks. Thirteen fillies will leave the starting gate after a 14th, Ava's Grace, scratched from the race. The Kentucky Oaks 2021 features an evenly-matched field with the top three favorites tightly grouped. The Todd Pletcher-trained Malathaat…

A spot in the Breeders' Cup Classic will be on the line when nine horses leave the starting gate in the 2021 Stephen Foster Stakes on Saturday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The winner of Saturday's $600000 race will earn a place in the $6 million Classic on Nov. 6 at Del Mar. For Saturday, the Brendan Walsh-trained Maxfield is listed as the…

The Juan Arriagada-trained Estilo Talentoso will try to win back-to-back races for the first time in her career when she leaves the starting gate in the 2021 Princess Rooney Stakes on Saturday at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla. This 4-year-old daughter of MacLean's Music won the Bed o' Roses Stakes in her last start, her fourth career…