Belmont At The Big A Picks & Predictions — June 19, 2026
We're heading to Belmont at the Big A on Friday, June 19 for an eight-race card that mixes maiden action, claiming contests, and allowance company across both dirt and turf. Temperatures are sitting at a comfortable 77°F under cloudy skies — conditions that typically keep tracks playing fair without the hard, sun-baked bias you get on scorching summer afternoons.
The card has a little of everything: a pair of maiden special weights bookending the first half, a couple of turf routes to close things out, and some intriguing claiming and allowance spots in between where sharp handicappers can find real value. Eight races, eight opinions — let's break it down.
Best Bets
Race 1
Maiden Special Weight · 5 1/2 fur · Dirt
A wide-open maiden special weight sprint where no horse has a published speed figure to lean on — this one comes down to connections and TrackWiz ratings separating a tightly bunched field.
Al Mowashaah earns the top TrackWiz rating in the field at 58.33 and draws the rail with Manuel Franco in the irons — one of the sharpest sticks in the game right now. Brad Cox is among the elite maiden trainers in the country, and his first-out runners demand respect at any price. The morning line 2/1 is fair, and we're comfortable tapping this one as our top selection in an otherwise wide-open opener.
Banker Bull sits second in TrackWiz ratings at 57.50 and gets Flavien Prat — a pilot who knows how to put a first-timer in the right spot early in a sprint. Trainer Amelia Green's 5-horse draws a manageable post and figures to get a clean trip near the pace. At 5/2 on the morning line, the value is thin, but the profile is sound enough to back for place.
Freedom Charge checks in third overall with a 56.67 TrackWiz rating, which in a maiden field this compressed is meaningful separation. Ricardo Santana Jr. knows how to navigate a sprint scenario and trainer Steven Asmussen's barn is routinely dangerous first out. The 3/1 morning line makes this a reasonable exotics anchor for the show spot.
Race 2
Maiden Claiming · 7 fur · Dirt
Noble Heritage's massive TrackWiz rating towers over this maiden claiming field, but the Chad Brown barn saddles two horses that could make the exacta interesting underneath.
Noble Heritage stands out like a sore thumb here — an 88.83 TrackWiz rating that dwarfs the entire field by 30 points is not something you often see at this level. Trainer Jorge Delgado has the horse pointed for this spot, and Edgard Zayas knows how to ride a 7-furlong trip without panicking. The 9/5 morning line likely gets bet down, but the rating gap justifies the short price — this is a horse that belongs in a much tougher race.
Old Time Rocknroll is one of two Chad Brown runners in here, and this one draws Manuel Franco — a combination that always commands attention at the Big A. The 58.33 rating and a 55 average speed figure (best among the non-Noble Heritage horses) suggest this one can handle the 7-furlong maiden claiming distance. At 2/1, the place spot makes sense as an exacta companion to the favorite.
Capt Fluff N Stuff is the other half of the Chad Brown barn entry, rated 57.50 with a 54 average speed figure. Flavien Prat gives this one every chance, and the barn's overall sharp form here makes running both Brown horses in your exotics a smart move. Don't sleep on a dead-heated or close finish between stablemates — it happens more than you'd think.
Race 3
Claiming · 7 fur · Dirt
So Vain's TrackWiz rating tells the real story in this claiming sprint — despite a soft morning line, the numbers suggest the chalk Power of Women is being overplayed while a legitimate alternative sits at a generous price.
So Vain is our top pick here with a field-best 87.08 TrackWiz rating — a number that leapfrogs Power of Women despite the oddsmakers making her the heavy chalk at 4/5. Kendrick Carmouche gets the mount for trainer Linda Rice, a sharp conditioner who targets claiming races with precision. The 14% career win rate is respectable in this company, and the 3/1 morning line represents legitimate value against an odds-on favorite whose rating trails by more than 15 points.
Power of Women is the clear public choice at 4/5 morning line, and that price makes her tougher to back for win — but Ricardo Santana Jr. and trainer Richard Dutrow give her every tool to hit the board. The 71.61 rating isn't weak, and a 16% career win rate is workmanlike in a spot like this. She's best used as a place hedge or underneath in exactas rather than a straight win bet at that price.
Icy Legs draws Dylan Davis and posts a 57.81 TrackWiz rating — third best in the field by a reasonable margin over the rest. The 11% career win rate is modest but the 7/2 morning line gives you a fighting chance in the show pool and in exotic combinations. In a race where the top two horses separate themselves, Icy Legs is the most logical third-place finisher.
Our free coverage kicks off with the first three races on the card, and they're a solid warm-up act. Race 1 is a 5½-furlong maiden special weight on dirt where Al Mowashaah opens as the 2/1 morning-line choice — always worth watching how a short-priced maiden handles the early speed question at this distance. Race 2 is where we get our teeth into it: Noble Heritage tops our TrackWiz ratings with an 88.83 rating in a 7-furlong maiden claimer and comes in as the 9/5 favorite. That's about as confident as our model gets in a maiden field. Race 3 brings the claimers out at 7 furlongs and So Vain at 3/1 gives us a solid value proposition — a horse with a meaningful rating (87.08) at a price that doesn't require you to hold your breath at the window.
The cloudy, mild conditions shouldn't dramatically alter pace scenarios today, which is good news for our free picks — none of them are banking on a track playing unusually fast or slow to make their case.
Full Card Analysis
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Three solid free plays to get your Friday started — Al Mowashaah, Noble Heritage, and So Vain are our top selections in Races 1–3. For the full eight-race breakdown, pace projections, and multi-race wager strategy, subscribers get the complete picture. Unlock the full card at TrackWiz Premium and make every race count today at the Big A.