It was a unique running of the 2020 Belmont Stakes.
The Classic was contested as the first leg of the Triple Crown’s first leg for the first time in history and run at a distance other than 1 ½ miles for the first time since 1925 and in front of no spectators,
That did not diminish the win of the odds-on favourite Tiz The Law (pic: NYRA/Adam Coglianese), which assumed command at the top of the straight under Manny Franco and then drew away to score by 3-3/4 lengths over Dr Post (Quality Road) with Max Player (Honor Code) third.
Winning trainer Barclay Tagg told the NYRA website the race went according to plan.
“It looked to me like everything just went like clockwork,” Tagg said. “That’s the way the horse likes to run and that’s the position the horse likes to be in.
“Manny knows the horse very well. We discussed it quickly before I put him up on the horse and I felt very confident Manny would ride him that way. I felt pretty solid about halfway down the lane. It’s a good feeling.
“The long-range plan would be the Travers, the Derby and then the Preakness. After that, they’ll probably want me to take him to the Breeders’ Cup.” Tagg said.
Tiz The Law sold for $110,000 as a yearling at the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred sale. The son of Constitution has now won five of his six starts and earned Sackatoga Stables $1,480,300.