The Grade 2, $200,000 Pennine Ridge Stakes at Belmont at the Big A drew a field of seven, all lightly raced and with three having won or placed in stakes races previously. Legend of Time won the Jumeirah Guineas Stakes and Jumeirah Classic Stakes earlier this year in Dubai. Then, three weeks ago in the Grade 2 American Turf Stakes presented by Twinspires he was sent to post as the favorite but finished fifth after racing in second for most of the race. Cable Ready won the Tin Cup Chalice Stakes last fall and is one of four in the field entering the race off a win on turf. Triple Espresso finished second in the Kitten’s Joy Stakes last summer in the very first start of his career and has won one of five races since then. Royal Majesty has won two of his last three races, both on grass, and appears to fit with these horses. Both Risk Tolerance and White Palomino hail from the barn of Chad Brown and hope to move up in class to this stakes level off maiden wins. St James the Great earned his first win last November before a five-month layoff and finished fifth of 10 five weeks ago in his first race back.

Top Contenders:

Royal Majesty wins at Keeneland. (Jessica Morgan/Eclipse Sportswire)

Royal Majesty debuted in England last October and finished fifth of 11 but was a different horse just three months later when running in Florida, having moved to the barn of trainer Bill Mott. After racing in eighth in the field of 11 for the opening quarter mile, Royal Majesty moved up to seventh, then fifth, then third, before showing a lot of physical and mental talent to win by a neck. Next placed in the Colonel Liam Stakes in March, Royal Majesty could only manage a fifth of nine finish. However, last month at Keeneland the colt showed even more ability than he had in his debut when showing a strong turn of foot going from sixth on the far turn while four paths wide to within a head of the lead with an eighth of a mile to go. Drawing away from the other 10 horses to win by two lengths, Royal Majesty earned a career-best 97 Equibase Speed Figure and as it appears he is likely to improve again that makes him a strong contender to win this year’s Pennine Ridge Stakes.

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White Palomino may be taking a big step up in class moving from the maiden ranks into stakes company but the 97 figure earned in that win on April 6 suggests he deserves to be in this field. That was only the second race of his career, the other a third-place finish nearly three months earlier in January. Trained by Chad Brown, who won this race last year with Kalik as well as two other times in the past 10 years, White Palomino gets the ground saving rail and could get a great trip from that position to win again. On the other hand, it must be noted that per a Race Lens query, over the last five years when Brown runs a 3-year-old in a two-turn stakes race on turf off a maiden win, his record is 5-4-5 in 38 races.

Triple Espresso won on turf three races back in January, also with a big burst of speed rallying from fifth with an eight of a mile to run before drawing away at the wire. That effort earned an 84 figure, but two races later in the Jeff Ruby Steaks Triple Espresso improved to a career-best 93 figure and appears capable of even better in this race. In that race Triple Espresso finished fourth but was beaten by a head for third and was another head behind the runner-up, while the winner was four lengths in front. That third-place finisher was Seize the Grey, who won the Preakness Stakes last week. Moving back to grass after that decent effort on all-weather, Triple Espresso could return to competitive form good enough to have a say in the outcome of this race.

The rest of the Pennine Ridge Field, with their best Equibase Speed Figures, is Cable Ready (84), Legend of Time (96), Risk Tolerance (89) and St James the Great (86).

Win Contenders in preference order:

Royal Majesty

White Palomino

Triple Espresso