Correll’s Corner: The Belmont Stakes

Ron Correll
Senior columnist
Tracksideview

TRINITY, Fla. I’ll get this off my chest one more time. This is the Belmont Stakes “light” because once again this year it will be run at a mile-and-a-quarter distance instead of the mile-and-a-half “Test of Champions.”

This is because of the renovations at Belmont Park, which will continue next year. One would think they could figure out how to run the race at the correct distance, but then again it’s Saratoga.

There isn’t much more that can be said about the main contenders. Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby, Journalism won the Preakness, Baeza was third in the Derby and Rodriguez missed both races because of a bruised foot.

If you are playing multi-race tickets, I would use all four colts on them.

I’m going with Rodriguez in the top spot. He was my pick in the Derby before he was scratched and if he can gallop around the “Graveyard of Champions” the way he did in the Wood Memorial, I think he will be hard to catch.