Triple Crown changes: Should the big races be more spread out to give the horses more rest?

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The ongoing discussion as to whether the Triple Crown schedule should be elongated is a three-part debate with no clear consensus.

The first component is whether there should be more time between the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes than the traditional five weeks to give the thoroughbreds longer to recover or whether having the stamina for the arduous task is actually the true test of the Triple Crown? Then, there are the questions of how to otherwise space the races and when to implement a new timeline if it’s ultimately decided to change the schedule?

“I think everything under the umbrella needs to be brought up here,” NBC Sports horse racing analyst and handicapper Ed Olczyk told Newsday in a phone interview. “All sports have changed.

“Knowing the dynamic of the game now and the business of it and everybody being very sensitive to the health of these equine athletes, we have to do everything that we can to make sure that we give them the optimum amount of time and rest to have that opportunity. I don’t know if there’s a perfect number.”

The 158th Belmont Stakes will be run Saturday at Saratoga Race Course at 1 1/4 miles for the third and final year before returning to reconstructed Belmont Park in 2027 at its traditional 1 1/2-mile length.

“I have no clue how quick something will happen [but] I do think it does need to change,” said trainer Brad Cox, who has 6-1 Commandment running on Saturday and won the 2021 Belmont Stakes with Essential Quality. “Look, I’m all for history and all the great horses that have won the Triple Crown. But it’s definitely a different time and era and horses. Two weeks is definitely not enough for a turnaround.”

The Cherie DeVaux-trained Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo (9-2) and the Todd Pletcher-trained Renegade (2-1), the runner-up on May 2, both skipped the Preakness on May 16 to point to the Belmont. Meanwhile, Preakness winner Napoleon Solo did not run in the Derby and will not run on Saturday.

Golden Tempo is the second straight Derby winner to skip the Preakness in favor of the Belmont after only three Derby winners missed the Preakness from 1960-2018. Yet a horse winning the Triple Crown is not ancient history. American Pharoah (2015) and Justify (2018) both did, becoming the 12th and 13th horses to do so after Affirmed (1978) had been the 11th.

“I just think it’s time for horse racing to look at, ‘How do we continue the momentum from the Kentucky Derby and are we giving these athletes enough time to recover and come back and give them the chance to run in the Preakness and continue to make history?’” Olczyk said. “It’s going to happen. I believe it’s going to change. I don’t know when. I don’t know how.”

The main argument for a longer Triple Crown schedule is it should increase the number of elite horses that could run in all three legs since they are now bred and trained much differently than in the past, when running them frequently was the norm.

And, to be fair, there are stricter health guidelines now. The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) was established in 2020 as a centralized oversight entity and its anti-doping and medication control program was enacted in 2023. Masking a horse injury is now more difficult and late scratches have become more frequent.

“Though we bypassed the Preakness, I actually admire and respect the Triple Crown the way that it is,” DeVaux said. “It takes a special type of horse to do that. The horse has to kind of be there from the beginning . . . as opposed to a horse like Golden Tempo, who's improved to get there.”

“I have traditionally been one that's in favor of keeping history in its place and trying to do it the same way,” said Pletcher, who also has 12-1 Powershift in the Belmont. “But I just think we're at a point in the industry where we have to make some changes. If we could put ourselves in a position where the top 14 horses are running in all three legs of the Triple Crown, or potentially doing that, it would certainly be more interesting than most horses shipping to Preakness and then some coming back into Belmont. We need to improve.”

The proposals for change have ranged from having three weeks between each race to running the three legs over a nine-week span as opposed to five or having the Derby in May, the Preakness in June and the Belmont in July.

“I think it’s something that, in the years ahead, is going to keep being looked at to see if it’s sustainable to keep what’s here,” said trainer Chad Brown, who will saddle 6-1 Emerging Market, 12-1 Growth Equity and 20-1 Ottinho in the Belmont. “I’m not advocating for one or the other. My prediction is it’s probably not sustainable running horses back in two weeks.”

Still, there are hurdles toward reaching a consensus on the debate. The New York Racing Association (Belmont), Churchill Downs Incorporated (Kentucky Derby) and the Maryland Jockey Club (Preakness) would all have to agree on a new schedule.

So, too, would the broadcast partners, who might prefer the status quo. This year’s Derby drew an average of 19.6 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, making it the most-watched Derby since 1983. NBC/Peacock then drew 5.5 million viewers for the Preakness, the most since 2021.

Fox Sports owns the Belmont broadcast rights.

“We’re happy to sit down,” NYRA chief executive officer and president David O’Rourke told Newsday. “There’s never been a sitdown of the three entities to discuss this. But if we’re going to touch something as sacred as that, I think you’ve got to do that in a very prudent manner.

“We’re playing with the heart and soul of the game here.”

By Andrew Gross

andrew.gross@newsday.comAGrossNewsday

Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.