This year’s 101st running of the $750,000, Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup drew a small but competitive field of five horses that is headlined by Code of Honor and Tacitus, the 1-2 finishers in the Grade 1 Travers Stakes. The race offers 3-year-olds a chance to take on older male horses for the first time and could possibly be a key race when it comes to determining a 3-year-old male champion this year. The winner also secures themselves a spot in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Alongside these two, will be a field of three other hopefuls looking to take home a piece of the $750,000 purse. They include Grade 1 winners, Vino Rosso and Preservationist, and Olympic Village.
The Jockey Club Gold Cup is slated as race number 10 on Belmont’s 11 race card. Post time for this race is set for 5:49 p.m. ET.
| Number | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | M/L Odds |
| 1 | Tacitus | Jose L. Ortiz | William I. Mott | 7/2 |
| 2 | Code of Honor | John R. Velazquez | Claude R. McGaughey III | 8/5 |
| 3 | Vino Rosso | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | Todd A. Pletcher | 9/2 |
| 4 | Preservationist | Junior Alvarado | James A. Jerkens | 2-1 |
| 5 | Olympic Village | Javier Castellano | Ramon Guzman | 30-1 |
(1) Tacitus: 7/2
Tacitus has never really run a bad race, as he’s finished fourth or better in all eight of his starts and only finished outside the top three in his career debut. Included in these races are victories in both the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby and Grade 2 Wood Memorial. Since then, he finished fourth and placed third in the Kentucky Derby after Maximum Security’s disqualification, ran a wide trip and finished second in the Belmont Stakes, stumbled at the gate and finished second in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy, and, uncharacteristically, jumped out to the lead with blinkers on for the first time and finished second in the Grade 1 Travers Stakes behind Code of Honor. The 1 ¼-miles distance is ideal, but does Tacitus have that next step in him, where he can improve enough to win a big race?
(2) Code of Honor: 8/5
After Code of Honor’s victory in the Grade 1 Travers Stakes, trainer Shug McGaughey opted to bypass the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby in order to take on older horses in this spot. Prior to the Travers, The Noble Mission colt won the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth Stakes in March, ran third in the Grade 1 Florida Derby, finished third and placed second in the Kentucky Derby after the disqualification of Maximum Security, and won the Grade 3 Dwyer at Belmont Park. A win over older males here would really strengthen his case for the Eclipse Award as champion 3-year-old male.
(3) Vino Rosso: 9/2
You never really know what you are going to get with Vino Rosso. However, as of late, the 4-year-old Curlin colt has won two of his last four starts, posted his first career Grade 1 win, and recorded the two highest Equibase Speed Figures of his career. He has been training well for trainer Todd Pletcher at Belmont, where in his only start he finished fourth behind Triple Crown winner Justify in the 2018 Belmont Stakes. Many seem to love him at the 1 ¼-mile distance, although he is just 3:1-0-0 at the distance.
(4) Preservationist: 2-1
This 6-year-old son of Arch did not run in a stakes race of any kind until this year. Now, he holds victories in both the Grade 1 Woodward and Grade 2 Suburban. Preservationist also has two wins and a second in three races on the Belmont Park main track, including the 4 ½-length victory in the Suburban. He has won four out of his last five starts with a victory over the 1 ¼-miles race distance. He is in great form and should work out a nice trip.
(5) Olympic Village: 30-1
Olympic Village will make his stakes debut in the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup after being claimed for $75,000 out of a 2 ¾-length win back on Aug. 16 in a seven-furlong race at Saratoga. He has won three straight races by open lengths, but has a tough task ahead of himself, as he is stretching out to 1 ¼-miles for the first time, while never competing in a race longer than 1 1/16-miles.