The 155th running of the Grade 1 $1.5 million Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets will be broadcast on FOX from 4-7:30 p.m. ET, with a scheduled post time of 7:02. The final leg of the Triple Crown, run at a mile and a half, attracted a field of nine.

Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith will serve as an expert commentator for FOX. He is a three-time winner of the Belmont, flashing across the wire first with Drosselmeyer (2010), Palace Malice (2013) and Triple Crown winner Justify (2018).

Smith continues to compete at a high level at age 55. He examined the prospects of a number of the race’s top contenders as part of a wide-ranging question-and-answer session conducted on behalf of America’s Best Racing.

PEDULLA: With this being the 50^th anniversary of Secretariat’s machine-like romp in the Belmont Stakes, will we ever see a performance like that again?

SMITH: Never.

PEDULLA: Why do you say that without hesitation?

SMITH: How long ago was that? We’ll never see something like that again. We’ll never see another Michael Jordan. We’ll never see another Secretariat. It was a moment in time that was just meant to be.

PEDULLA: Does this work for FOX possibly signal your future when your riding career ends?

SMITH: You know, it’s really something I’ve been looking forward to for my second career. I’ve thought this is really something I want to do. This is going to be a really good prep race, so to say, to see if it’s something I enjoy, to see if it’s something I’m good at or not. It’s something that fell into place and I’m so happy that it did. It’s an opportunity to see where it takes me. But I ain’t done yet, buddy. Trust me, I ain’t done yet.

PEDULLA: What are the keys to riding well in the Belmont Stakes?

SMITH: It doesn’t favor closers as much as you would think it would. As a matter of fact, it’s almost the opposite. It doesn’t mean a closer can’t win the race.

PEDULLA: Is the ideal position to be forwardly placed?

SMITH: Forwardly placed or somewhere where you’re not taking the kickback for so long. It’s a long way to take the kickback in the face. If you can position yourself to be placed where you’re not taking so much kickback, the horse will respond.

PEDULLA: Can National Treasure repeat his Preakness Stakes success?

SMITH: I would never say never. I would never say he’s without a chance. 

PEDULLA: Was National Treasure’s front-running Preakness win simply a product of a slow pace?

SMITH: I truly believe this. I still don’t think we’ve seen the best of him, so that gives him a chance (in the Belmont).

PEDULLA: Forte has not run since the Curlin Florida Derby Presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms at Xalapa. Can he overcome that kind of layoff?

Smith and Grade 1 winner Taiba. (Eclipse Sportswire)

SMITH: Todd Pletcher is the trainer. To me, I have a lot of faith in him. I think Todd makes up for the layoff.

PEDULLA: Tapit Trice, another Pletcher trainee, has been viewed for a long time as a Belmont Stakes horse. Do you see why that is out there?

SMITH: He has the ability to win something like this. But he hasn’t shown the mind, day in and day out, like Forte has. Forte is straightforward and shows up every time. Tapit Trice has some issues now and then and that’s a knock on him, I would think.

PEDULLA: How do you evaluate Angel of Empire, who finished third in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve?

SMITH: He didn’t quite show up the way they thought he would in the Kentucky Derby, but that doesn’t mean he can’t. He certainly can. Look, when you get to this level it’s like an NFL team. They’re in the NFL because they’re good enough to play in the NFL. You can have a team that is 0-for, or whatever, and they can beat the top team every now and then. They’re all capable.

PEDULLA: Red Route One ran fourth in the Preakness. Do you see him as a horse that is moving forward?

SMITH: He ran well. You can’t take that from him. I’m not saying he can’t move forward, but he’s going to have to.

PEDULLA: Peter Pan Stakes winner Arcangelo will be trying two turns for the first time. How challenging is that?

SMITH: I’m not saying he can’t. But it’s your first go around two turns and you’re going to try Big Sandy at a mile and a half? That’s a tall task.

PEDULLA: Cody’s Wish heads the field in what looks to be a contentious Hill ‘n’ Dale Metropolitan Handicap, aka the Met Mile. How good is Cody’s Wish?

SMITH: Best horse in the country right now. And emphasize “right now.”

PEDULLA: So who will win the Belmont Stakes?

SMITH: To me, the best horse in the race is Forte. His résumé says so over and over again. That’s not to say that the others can’t do it. They’re in the Belmont for a reason. They have a lot of talent. But if we see the Forte we’ve seen in the past, to me he’s just superior.