BELMONT SATURDAY

9:09 VOSBURGH STAKES (GRADE 1) (3YO+) 6F

Imperial Hint figures to be heavy favourite in his attempt for a second straight Grade 1 victory and third straight win overall. The diminutive and popular five-year-old overwhelmed a better field winning the Grade 1 Vanderbilt in late July at Saratoga and owns a victory at Belmont.

Imperial Hint turned in four straight bullet works for this race and looks to sharpen up for return to Breeders’ Cup Sprint. Silver Ride and Mr. Crow, respective third and fifth last time in a restricted sprint stakes at Saratoga, appear the next best of overmatched group. Silver Ride is two-for-five at Belmont while Mr. Crow meets Imperial Hint again after finishing fourth in the Vanderbilt.

SELECTION: IMPERIAL HINT

Next best: Silver Ride

9:42 JOE HIRSCH TURF CLASSIC STAKES (GRADE 1) (3YO+) (TURF) 1M4F

Robert Bruce makes his return following half-length victory in Grade 1 Arlington Million last month against deep field that features several familiar foes.

The multiple Group 1 Chilean-bred finished sixth, beaten only a length, behind Spring Quality, Sadler’s Joy and Hi Happy in the Grade 1 Manhattan two starts back and faces that trio again.

A victory in $500,000 fixture would solidify his spot in the Breeders’ Cup Turf field and give trainer Chad Brown his third win in this race in the last four years.

Carrick beat fellow three-year-olds at 38/1 in the Grade 1 Secretariat last time and takes on older horses for the first time, in receipt of 5lbs. Channel Maker is one of five who chased the absent Glorious Empire last time in the Grade 1 Sword Dancer and is the one to beat if the favorite doesn’t bring his best race.

Tom Dascombe sends over the Teofilo gelding Teodoro, well-beaten in the Ebor last time but previously, an all the way winner of a Group 3 at Haydock under Richard Kingscote. Ryan Moore rides this time but if he got a clear lead, he could run well above his likely odds.

SELECTION: CHANNEL MAKER

Next best: Spring Quality

10:50 JOCKEY CLUB GOLD CUP STAKES (GRADE 1) (3YO+) 1M2F

Diversify returns in title defense and probable prep for Breeders’ Cup Classic off a dominating victory over Mind Your Biscuits in the Grade 1 Whitney last month at Saratoga. New York-bred gelding loves the course – he’s six-for-eight with two seconds at Belmont – and is two-for-two at the 10-furlong trip.

Diversify meets a serious challenger in Thunder Snow, who topped West Coast and other top Americans in Grade 1 Dubai World Cup in March. Godolphin’s charge didn’t impress in Group 1 Juddmonte International last time but that looks like purely a prep for this and the ultimate goal of the Breeders’ Cup Classic in November at Churchill Downs.

Ireland’s Mendelssohn is back – his fourth return to the US since last November’s Breeders’ Cup win – and will be a factor if he runs back to his runner-up in the Travers at Saratoga, where Belmont Stakes second Gronkowski was only eighth.

SELECTION: DIVERSIFY

Next best: Mendelssohn

SANTA ANITA SATURDAY

10:30 AMERICAN PHAROAH STAKES (GRADE 1) (2YO) 1M 1/2F

Small field for Southern California’s top two-year-old stakes and a rematch between the first two finishers in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity in Game Winner and Rowayton. Game Winner, a son of Candy Ride, scored by a length and a half that day over field that included highly-regarded stablemate Roadster.

Bob Baffert owns seven victories in the race – including the 2014 edition with the race’s now named-after and eventual Triple Crown winner – and figures to add another. Rowayton was a slight surprise at 7/1 as the runner-up in the Del Mar Futurity and is one of two for Jerry Hollendorfer along with last-out maiden winner Gunmetal Gray.

SELECTION: GAME WINNER

Next best: Gunmetal Gray

12:00 CHANDELIER STAKES (GRADE 1) (2YO FILLIES) 1M 1/2F

Small group and a potential battle of high-dollar Fasig-Tipton Florida juvenile in training sale purchases this year with Del Mar Debutante winner Bellafina, who cost $800,000, taking on debut maiden winner Der Lu, who brought $900,000.

Der Lu is one of two runners for 10-time Chandelier winner Bob Baffert along with Mother Mother. The latter finished second to Bellafina last time in the Del Mar Debutante. Don’t discount Brill, a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro who cost $1 million at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Kentucky July Sale and fourth as the 7/10 favourite in the Debutante for Jerry Hollendorfer.

SELECTION: MOTHER MOTHER

Next best: Bellafina

12:30 RODEO DRIVE STAKES (GRADE 1) (3YO+ FILLIES AND MARES) (TURF) 1M 2F

Vasilika puts six-race win streak on the line against Cambodia, Sophie P, Paved and others. Vasilika and Cambodia finished one-two last time out in the John C. Mabee going nine furlongs and they both stretch out to unknown trip in this Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf prep.

Claimed for $40,000 in February, Vasilika lost her first start for new connections then rattled off her six straight wins that include a starter handicap stakes and the Mabee.

Sophie P bids for second Grade 1 of the season – she won the Gamely in late May on the course - and needs to improve off fifth behind Vasilika and Cambodia last time. Paved takes on older rivals for the first time off back-to-back off-the-board finishes in Grade 1s following a victory in the Grade 2 Honeymoon.

SELECTION: CAMBODIA

Next best: Vasilika

1:00 AWESOME AGAIN STAKES (GRADE 1) (3YO+) 1M 1F

California’s two best older horses in training, Accelerate and West Coast, meet for the first time in the day’s feature.

Accelerate is the now horse, coming off back-to-back blowout Grade 1 victories in the Gold Cup and Pacific Classic, and heading into the weekend is the favorite for the Breeders’ Cup Classic. West Coast returns from lengthy freshening after chasing Thunder Snow to a runner-up finish in the $10 million Dubai World Cup in late March.

He finished second to Gun Runner in $12 million Pegasus World Cup in his only other start this season, giving him a bankroll of $3.6 million on the season. That’s almost as much as the other five members of the field combined, including Accelerate. A tall order to find a potential spoiler among the other four.

SELECTION: ACCELERATE

Next best: West Coast

Also this evening, the Jamie Osbourne-trained Toast Of New York lines up in the Grade 3 Lukas Classic Stakes over nine furlongs at Churchill Downs. Julien Leparoux rides the seven-year-old gelding last seen in when last in the Pegasus World Cup in January but he is one of the outsiders against top US sprinter/miler Mind Your Biscuits.

SANTA ANITA SUNDAY

1.30 ZENYATTA STAKES (GRADE 1) 3YO+ FILLIES AND MARES 1 1/16 MILES

The final Grade 1 prep race for the Breeders’ Cup takes place at Santa Anita tomorrow where the top older mare Abel Tasman bids for her third Grade 1 of the year back in California. Her neck defeat of Elate in the Grade 1 Personal Ensign at Saratoga last time out is the outstanding piece of form.

The danger might be her own Baffert-trained stablemate Vale Dori. She won four straight graded stakes races in 2017, including the Grade 1 Santa Margarita Stakes at Santa Anita, and seems to be slowly rounding back into form and overcame a slow start to finish second in the Tranquility Lake Stakes at Del Mar last month.

Vale Dori was still beaten over eight lengths in that race by the runaway winner Shenandoah Queen, a somewhat inconsistent but unquestionably talented filly from the barn of John Sadler and she could be a major player.