Golden Tempo Captures Belmont, Advances Triple Crown Quest
Golden Tempo wins Belmont Stakes, two legs of Triple Crown completed under historic first female multi-Triple Crown winner trainer.
Event / Sports
Golden Tempo Triple Crown
Golden Tempo wins the 2026 Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course, ridden by Jose Ortiz and trained by Cherie DeVaux, five weeks after winning the Kentucky Derby. DeVaux becomes the first woman to train multiple Triple Crown race winners.
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2026-08-16 to 2026-11-13 · UTC publication dates
Coverage begins 7 Jun, 05:36 UTC
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What happened
Jose Ortiz wins second Belmont Stakes as jockey
Jockey Jose Ortiz won the Belmont Stakes for the second time in his career, nine years after his first victory aboard Tapwrit in 2017. Ortiz rode Golden Tempo to victory in the 2026 Belmont, following a similar strategy to the Kentucky Derby where he trailed the leading horses before making a late charge to win.
Cherie DeVaux becomes first woman to win multiple Triple Crown races
Trainer Cherie DeVaux made history by becoming the first woman to train winners of multiple Triple Crown races. She previously became the first woman to train a Kentucky Derby winner with Golden Tempo, and now has won the Belmont Stakes as well. Jena Antonucci was the second woman in four years to win the Belmont, having won it with Arcangelo in 2023.
Belmont Stakes held at Saratoga Race Course for third and final time
The 2026 Belmont Stakes was the third and final running of the race at Saratoga Race Course in upstate New York. The traditional home of the Belmont Stakes on the border of Queens and Long Island is being demolished and rebuilt. The race is scheduled to return to Belmont Park the following year at its traditional 1 1/2-mile distance. The 2026 running at Saratoga was contested at 1 1/4 miles due to the track configuration.
Golden Tempo wins 2026 Belmont Stakes, completing two legs of Triple Crown
Golden Tempo, ridden by jockey Jose Ortiz, won the 158th running of the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course with a time of 2:03.49, winning by 1 1/4 lengths over second-place finisher Commandment. The victory came five weeks after Golden Tempo won the Kentucky Derby. Renegade, the race favorite, finished third. Golden Tempo was trained by Cherie DeVaux and ran at odds of 6-1.
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