Man o’ War Stakes at Belmont Park
Belmont Park in New York runs one of the most enviable stakes schedules in the world and one of their biggest races is the $700,000, Grade I Man o’War Stakes.
The event staged in May on the turf track, is for those aged four and over and is run over a distance of one mile and three furlongs, a fairly hefty task around this track for American-bred horses although those race conditions mean it can attract some of the better European middle-distance thoroughbreds.
Originally held over at Aqueduct in 1959 along with another six renewals since the Man o’ War was briefly a handicap and is named for the amazing early 20th-century horse who won multiple top-level races including the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes.
More recently, this race has been won by such all-time greats as Secretariat, Theatrical, Daylami and Fantastic Light.