Nor’easter Forces Belmont Park Weekend Cancellation; Six Stakes Shifted to Thursday
The New York Racing Association has canceled racing at Belmont Park for Saturday and Sunday, September 26-27, with a powerful nor’easter expected to bring heavy rain and potentially damaging winds to Long Island throughout the weekend.
The decision, announced Friday, wipes out two programs that were scheduled to feature six graded stakes. Those races will not be lost, however, as NYRA plans to bring all six back on Thursday, October 1.
Saturday’s 11-race card was headed by four graded events: the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic and Grade 2 Flower Bowl on turf, along with the Grade 2 Gallant Bloom and Grade 3 Vosburgh on the main track. Sunday’s Grade 3 Belmont Turf Sprint and Grade 3 Winter Memories will also be moved to Thursday.
All six stakes are scheduled to be redrawn.
The cancellation comes with Long Island facing a weekend of difficult weather conditions. The National Weather Service placed the region under a wind advisory, with forecasts calling for strong sustained winds and gusts potentially exceeding 50 mph. Rainfall totals in the area were projected to reach between one and three inches.
In addition to shifting the stakes races to Thursday, NYRA has added an eight-race program for Wednesday, September 30. That card will be made up of overnight races originally scheduled for Saturday and Sunday and will also be redrawn.
NYRA also added Wednesday, October 7 to the Belmont Park racing calendar. The association had previously scheduled racing for Wednesdays on October 14, 21 and 28 to replace earlier canceled programs, including one at Saratoga and two at Aqueduct in February.
For trainer Miguel Clement, the possibility of losing Saturday’s program had already been factored into the preparation of Far Bridge, who was entered in the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic.
Clement sent Far Bridge to the Belmont turf course Friday morning for an additional workout, with the veteran turf runner covering a half-mile in company with Don’t Jinx It in 49.96 seconds. Far Bridge completed his final quarter-mile in 23 seconds.
Clement told Daily Racing Form that he had anticipated the likelihood that Saturday’s card would not be run and believed another work would benefit Far Bridge from a fitness standpoint. The Joe Hirsch represents a demanding assignment for the horse, particularly at 1 1/2 miles in his first start following a six-month layoff.
Far Bridge, winner of the 2024 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic, has not raced since winning the Pan American in March. He was subsequently sidelined by injury.
The Joe Hirsch is one of the major late-season turf events for older horses and serves as an important prep toward the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Turf. The race originally attracted a field of seven.
European runners El Cordobes, Pride of Arras and Fort George were among those entered, along with Minaret Station, Program Trading, Asbury Park and Far Bridge.
The Grade 2 Flower Bowl also carries considerable Breeders’ Cup implications as a “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf.
An 11-horse field had originally been assembled for the Flower Bowl, consisting of Fionn, Sunlit Uplands, Favorite Memory, Kathynmarissa, Storm Miami, Opulent Restraint, Evershed, Esna, Silvology, Gezora and Cathedral.
The Flower Bowl was scheduled for 1 1/4 miles on turf and carried a $500,000 purse. The Joe Hirsch, also worth $500,000, was set for 1 1/2 miles on the grass.
Saturday’s other two stakes were the $250,000 Gallant Bloom, a Grade 2 event for fillies and mares at 6 1/2 furlongs, and the $250,000 Grade 3 Vosburgh at seven furlongs. The Vosburgh is another Breeders’ Cup Challenge event, offering an automatic berth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
Sunday’s rescheduled stakes are the $200,000 Grade 3 Belmont Turf Sprint at six furlongs and the $200,000 Grade 3 Winter Memories, a one-mile turf race for 3-year-old fillies.
Fans who purchased tickets or prepaid parking for Saturday or Sunday directly through Ticketmaster, FEVO or the NYRA Sales Team are eligible to receive either a refund or ticket credit. Anyone who purchased through a third-party seller will need to contact that vendor directly, as NYRA will not issue refunds for those purchases.
With the weekend now cleared from the schedule, attention shifts to Thursday, when a weather-forced reshuffle will produce an unusually stakes-heavy weekday program at Belmont Park.
