Spot plays for Belmont dirt stakes on May 8

Saturday is a huge day of racing at Belmont Park. The $700,000 Man o’ War S. (G1) leads a card with five graded events, including a trio of Grade 3 tilts to be contested over Big Sandy. I will focus on the dirt frays in this piece.

Race 4 -- Runhappy S. (G3)

A compact, but swift, field of five will go postward in the six-furlong dash, led by Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) third #4 Firenze Fire. The accomplished bay son of Poseidon’s Warrior is something of a course specialist, recording an 8-5-1-0 local line, but the six-year-old will not offer a lot of value on the win end. I will try to knock off the likely short-priced favorite.

#1 Stan the Man has run a few major races on the course and comes in fresh for Terranova. The multiple stakes-winning son of Broken Vow didn’t fire in the Toboggan S. (G3) in January, but he has trained well since and seems poised for a big effort at a fair number in the small field. Joel Rosario has the call, and look for him to tuck his mount on the rail while tracking the pace from third early on.

Race 7 -- Vagrancy H. (G3)

Seven fillies and mares who bring fine form will contest the 6 1/2-furlong affair. Todd Beatie’s #3 Victim of Love figures to sit a dream trip while in second to the top of the lane under Rosario, much like she did in her upset tally in last year's edition. The Speightstown mare, who concluded last season with a third in the Ballerina S. (G1), had a good prep for Saturday when a solid second in an allowance try at Laurel Park. Dark bay five-year-old will defend her Vagrancy crown.

Race 9 -- Peter Pan S. (G3)

Six Belmont S. (G1) hopefuls will run 1 1/8 miles in a competitive event. Chad Brown’s #6 Risk Taking never fired when favored in the Wood Memorial S. (G2) in his most recent performance, but I will come back with the talented son of Medaglia d’Oro on this occasion. The $240,000 yearling purchase moved forward in a major way when adding blinkers three back, and I was impressed by his dominant tally in the Withers S. (G3) two starts prior, as well. I envision Irad keeping the Kentucky-bred in range early on before running them down inside the final furlong.