Horse Racing This Weekend: Key Races, Top Horses & Best Bets, September 19
Belmont Park Racetrack (Photo by Cogliaense Photos/NYRA)
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Breeders' Cup 2026 Corner
Come here every week to discover everything you need to know about Breeders' Cup 2026 hosted at Keeneland this year in Lexington, KY.
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Sovereignty rebounds in Whitney - Aug. 10
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Sovereignty, Magnitude meet again - Aug. 3
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Kalpana, Moonrise qualify at Ascot - July 27
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Survie strikes in Christophe Clement - Aug. 17
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Knightsbridge crushes Pacific Classic - Aug. 24
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Leading Change upsets the Travers - Aug. 31
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Tiffany stars in Kentucky Turf Cup - Sept. 7
- Breeders’ Cup Roundup: Notable Speech stars in Woodbine Mile - Sept. 14
The Secretariat statue with the new Belmont Park grandstand as a backdrop (Photo by Adam Coglianese/Coglianese Photos)
Belmont Park reopens with four racing surfaces
After a three-year redevelopment project, Belmont Park resumes live racing on Friday with a nine-race card highlighted by Japan’s superstar Forever Young in the Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1). The first post is at 1:30 p.m. ET.
Top horses and best bets for horse racing this weekend
Click to jump to each race listed!
Best Bets for the 2026 Pennsylvania Derby
Read the full analysis here: Tipsheet: The 2026 Pennsylvania Derby
A talented and well-matched field of 11 three-year-olds will run nine panels on the main oval at Parx in Saturday’s $1 million Pennsylvania Derby (G1).
Pennsylvania Derby Picks
- #6 The Puma
- #1 Zihnal
- #2 Iron Honor
- #7 Further Ado
Pennsylvania Derby Wagers
Top Horses for the 2026 Pennsylvania Derby
#6 THE PUMA: Classy Grade 3 winner has run well in every lifetime run leading up to this contest and gets the nod in this one. The chestnut son of Essential Quality has placed fourth in both the Haskell and Travers (G1) as of late, and the sophomore will also add blinkers for the first time here. Javier Castellanho will take the reins.
#1 ZIHNAL: Jonathan Thomas trainee earned his first graded win aided by the addition of blinkers in the West Virginia Derby (G3) last time and has a high ceiling. The Quality Road gelding has posted four solid morning drills ahead of the heat and is well drawn on the fence with John Velazquez coming in to retain the ride.
#2 IRON HONOR: Preakness (G1) runner-up was third in the Haskell (G1) last time and comes in with the blinkers back on in this spot. The Chad Brown trainee comes in with steady works in preparation for his local bow and will never be far back with Jose Ortiz in the stirrups.
#7 FURTHER ADO: Brad Cox pupil is a Grade 1 victor who can be electric on his best day and is the deserving morning-line choice in the deep field. The chestnut son of Gun Runner didn’t handle the slop at Monmouth last time, but he was very good in his score two back and has also trained well leading up to this event, too. The Kentucky-bred colt will have Flavien Prat in the silks for the first time.
Chief Wallabee wins at Gulfstream Park. (Photo by Coglianese Photos)
Pick 4 of the Week: Belmont Park Saturday, September 19
A challenging, yet entertaining, four-race closing sequence at Belmont Park on Saturday will be the Pick 4 of the Week.
Race 7 Wager
- $.50-cent Pick 4: 1,2,3,6,7,9,11 with 1 with 1,2,7,8,9,10 with 4,7 ($42)
Best Bets for the 2026 Jockey Club Gold Cup
Read the full analysis here: Betting With, and Against, Forever Young in the Jockey Club Gold Cup
International superstar #7 Forever Young (3-5) was assigned the widest post for Friday’s opening-day feature at the ‘new’ Belmont Park, the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1). The 1 1/4-mile test on the main surface attracted four millionaires among the five (scratched down from seven) that will go postward, but the contest goes through the Japanese sensation who has accumulated more than $31 million in his racing career.
Forever Young – With
Forever Young – Against
Top Horses for the 2026 Jockey Club Gold Cup
Forever Young is 11-for-15 in his lifetime and has run huge on multiple occasions in the U. S., highlighted by a triumph in the 2025 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) at Del Mar. An unlucky third in the 2024 Kentucky Derby (G1), the Yoshito Yahagi trainee was last seen finishing a clear second in the Dubai World Cup (G1) in March and has reportedly been training in a positive fashion in preparation for his Belmont bow. The five-year-old son of Reel Steel will be formidable with anything close to his peak performance under regular rider Ryusei Sakai.
2 Stars and Stripes (15-1) has yet to prove he belongs with Grade 1 runners, but he is a talented four-year-old with room for improvement, and the 10-furlong distance will be right in his wheelhouse. The Not This Time colt is a Grade 3 hero coming off a game score in the Birdstone S. at 1 3/4 miles at Saratoga in his latest appearance and will move forward in his third run off the break. I love both his value and the fact that John Velazquez will be taking the reins.
#1 Baeza has a world of raw ability and will race with blinkers off for the first time for Mott. The McKinzie colt has well-documented issues of breaking poorly from the gate, but the equipment change might aid him in this endeavor, and he will also have time to recover from a slow start while stretching out to 1 1/4 miles. The Kentucky-bred four-year-old drilled a bullet five panels on the Oklahoma training oval at Saratoga in his latest venture, and his best race will surely put him in the mix with Junior Alvarado taking the reins.
TwinSpires Jury
Belmont Park is back! The new Belmont Park opens its doors for a huge weekend of thoroughbred racing, and the TwinSpires Jury is here with picks and handicapping insight for some of the biggest stakes on the weekend schedule.
Best Bets for the 2026 Forever Together Stakes
Read the full analysis here: How to bet the 2026 Forever Together Stakes
A very talented field of seven fillies and mares will run 1 1/16 miles over the Belmont Park turf in Sunday’s $175,000 Forever Together S. The grassy feature is undoubtedly worthy of graded status this season, with some excellent ladies set for the affair, which includes defending champ #1 Oversubscribed.
Forever Together Wagers
- $20 win #1 Oversubscribed ($20)
- $5 exacta key box 1 with 3,7 ($20)
- $.50-cent trifecta 1,3 with 1,3,7 with all ($10)
Top Horses for the Forever Together Stakes
#1 Oversubscribed has come home first or second in seven of her nine lifetime runs to date, and I loved her latest performance when finishing a clear second behind a very good one in the Plenty of Grace S. at Aqueduct in the spring. By top European sire Too Darn Hot, the bay runs well while fresh, and her morning moves have been positive, too. The Klaravich color bearer possesses tactical speed in a cast mostly void of pace, and she could potentially inherit the lead in this spot from the rail. I’m confident that the mare will be right there in the closing stages of the event.
#3 Ashikidah ran a pair of nice races at Saratoga since arriving in the states. The four-year-old daughter of Belardo, who brought in more than $465,000 in the winter, was a stakes heroine overseas. She has a right to improve on Sunday while making her third run off the long absence. The French-bred bay faces a tall task on the class rise into this deep field, but I expect her to be up to the challenge and run a big one beneath Ricardo Santana, Jr.
#7 Dynamic Pricing is winless from a trio of runs in 2026 and has never seriously challenged for the top prize, but the five-year-old has also been knocking heads with some of the top horses in this division and is a great fit in this one from the outside post. By Night of Thunder, the Irish-bred is very good at middle distances on her best day, and she is still the class of the field. The bay has a strong closing kick and will be doing her best work in the lane with Manny Franco in the stirrups.
Bravaro wins at Belmont at the Big A. (Photo by Coglianese Photo)
How to bet the 2026 Gallant Bob Stakes
A full field of three-year-olds will jaunt six furlongs on the main strip at Parx in Saturday’s $400,000 Gallant Bob (G2).
Gallant Bob Wagers
- $10 exacta 10 with 4,6,8 ($30)
- $.50-cent superfecta 10 with 4,6,8 with 4,6,8 with all ($27)
Always a Runner wins the 2026 Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. (Photo by Horsephotos.com)
Exotics Plays for the Cotillion Stakes
Four of the nine sophomore fillies entered in Saturday’s $1 million Cotillion (G1) at Parx have previously achieved success at the graded stakes level, led by a pair of Grade 1 heroines.
Cotillion Exotics
- $12 exacta 4 with 5 ($12)
- $6 exacta box 4-5 ($12)
- $2 trifecta key 4 with 3,5,8 ($12)
- 10-cent superfecta 3,4,5 with 3,4,5,8 with 3,4,5,8 with all ($10.80)
Promotional Bonus Offers
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