In 2025, Saratoga Race Course will host nine more racing days.
NewsChannel 13’s According to Mark Mulholland, NYRA’s plans for an extended five-day Belmont at Saratoga Racing Festival, which will start on Wednesday, June 4 and go through Sunday, June 8, have been approved by the New York State Gaming Commission. On Saturday, June 7, the Belmont Stakes will take place.
Additionally, Saratoga will hold a special Fourth of July Racing Festival for the first time, which will include four days of racing from Thursday, July 3 to Sunday, July 6.
NYRA has not responded. Nonetheless, the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to be hosting the Belmont Stakes Festival once more, according to Todd Shimkus, president of the chamber.
“To start this historic festival, we are planning a second Belmont on Broadway,” he stated.
Every year, the chamber also hosts the July Fourth All-American Celebration, which includes bands, fireworks, and a road race.
“Our community has a great opportunity to create another must-attend weekend in Saratoga by combining that celebration with the world’s best horse racing,” he added.
Since the Fourth of July Festival coincides with the early start of the typical Saratoga meet, which starts this year on July 10 and ends on September 1, NYRA has been clear for months that it will be a one-time event.
The renovation of Belmont Park on Long Island is the reason for the additional racing days at Saratoga for both the Belmont and Fourth of July festivities. When the $455 million project opens in the fall of 2026, it will merge Belmont and Aqueduct and add four additional tracks.