Weekend works shape Belmont Stakes Festival picture across tracks

Golden Tempo delivered the weekend’s loudest stock-up move, breezing five furlongs in 1:00.20 at Keeneland with Jose Ortiz aboard after rain pushed the drill back a day. Cherie DeVaux said she was “really pleased” and believed the Kentucky Derby winner had taken “another step forward,” a notable update for a colt who skipped the Preakness and has won three of five starts while earning $3,433,000.

That breeze mattered because Golden Tempo is still the measuring stick for the Belmont Stakes picture even before post positions are drawn. His work came as the race shape around Saratoga, Laurel, Fair Hill and Santa Anita continued to develop in real time, with barns using the final May window to confirm fitness, hold their form and decide whether their next stop is a final prep or the big race itself. For bettors and horsemen, the signal was clear: Golden Tempo remained on schedule and looked like a horse whose weekend work kept him at the center of the festival conversation.

Chief Wallabee was the other move that changed the tone. He worked five furlongs in 1:01.16 at Saratoga in company with Gilded Bandit, and Bill Mott said he wanted “a little pressure behind him.” That pairing told a story of its own, with Mott using company to keep a late-developing colt honest while preserving options for where he lands next. Chief Wallabee had 50 qualifying points and sat 18th on the Kentucky Derby leaderboard before the Derby, so every clean move matters as his camp sorts out final placement.

Mott’s name carries extra weight in this Belmont cycle. He won last year’s Belmont with Sovereignty and is trying to become the first trainer in 30 years to win consecutive Belmont Stakes, a run last matched by D. Wayne Lukas from 1994 through 1996. Sovereignty went on to win the Belmont, Jim Dandy and Travers, so Mott’s current runners are being watched with the same expectation that followed that stable’s classic season.

The larger stage only heightens the importance of the weekend worktab. The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival will run June 3-7 at Saratoga Race Course, with the 158th Belmont Stakes set for Saturday, June 6 at 7:04 p.m. ET. NYRA has put 25 stakes worth $11,075,000 on the five-day card, including 10 Grade 1 races among 18 graded stakes, and Belmont Stakes Day alone will feature six Grade 1s among seven graded stakes. The Belmont will be run at 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga because of the track layout, making this the final Saratoga edition before Belmont racing returns to Belmont Park in 2027 and Belmont Park reopens for live racing on September 18, 2026. FOX Sports will carry all five days, so every breeze this close to the festival carries commercial and competitive weight.