Belmont Stakes Trivia

Since 1908 the winningest post position is #1 with 22 winners.
Next are post positions #3 and #5 tied with 13 winners each, then posts #2 and #7 tied with 11 winner each.
 
The track and stakes record at Belmont for 1 1/2 miles is 2:24 flat set in 1973 by Secretariat.
The fastest in the last 10 years is 2:26 flat for A.P. Indy in 1992 and the slowest is 2:32 for Thunder Gulch in 1995.
 
The Belmont, first run in 1867, is the oldest of the Triple Crown races and the fourth oldest stakes race in North America. The only ones older are the Phoenix Stakes at Keeneland, the Queen's Plate at Woodbine, and the Travers at Saratoga.
 
Only two fillies have won the Belmont out of 20 who entered. The winners were:

• Ruthless -- 1867 (the inaugural running)
• Tanya -- 1905

Since 1970:

• 14 Belmont winners led all or most of the way with 6 of these winning in wire to wire fashion
• 9 winners stalked the early going and were no farther back than 4th or 5th at any point
• 9 winners came from well off the pace to win.

The Belmont, first run in 1867, is the oldest of the Triple Crown races and the fourth oldest stakes race in North America. The only ones older are the Phoenix Stakes at Keeneland, the Queen's Plate at Woodbine, and the Travers at Saratoga.
 
Only two fillies have won the Belmont out of 20 who entered. The winners were:

• Ruthless -- 1867 (the inaugural running)
• Tanya -- 1905

The Belmont has been run at five different distances:

• 1 5/8 miles -- 1867 to 1873
• 1 1/4 miles -- 1890 to 1892, 1895, 1904, and 1905
• 1 1/8 miles -- 1893 and 1894
• 1 3/8 miles -- 1896 to 1903 and 1906 to 1925
• 1 1/2 miles -- all other years

The largest Belmont crowd was 103,222 in 2002, which shattered the old record of 85,818 set in 1999.


The leading Belmont winning jockeys are:

• James McLaughlin -- 6   from 1882 to 1888
• Eddie Arcaro -- 6   including two Triple Crown winners
• Earle Sande and Bill Shoemaker -- 5 each

The leading Belmont winning trainers are:

• James Rowe -- 8
• Sam Hildreth -- 7
• Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons -- 6
• Woody Stephens -- 5 consecutive in 1982 to 1986

In 134 runnings:

• 54 favorites have won the Belmont. 30 of these were at odds lower than even money...
• The lowest priced winner was Count Fleet at $2.10 in 1943
• The highest priced winner was Sarava at $142.50 in 2002