Happy Birthday America. Saratoga Race Course celebrates the 250th with a stacked 11-race Independence Day card featuring the Belmont Derby and Belmont Oaks and the Suburban Stakes. Toss in the Sanford – and $1 hot dogs – and it’s an extravaganza of red, white and blue proportions.
The Saturday card starts at 12:35 p.m., which will be the norm throughout the 2026 Saratoga meeting with a few exceptions on Whitney Day and Travers Day.
The Grade 3 Sanford for 2-year-olds drew a field of nine and goes as the fifth race at 2:54 p.m. The Grade 1 Belmont Oaks runs as the seventh at 4:06, with the Grade 2 Suburban (4:42) and Grade 1 Belmont Derby (5:20) in succession. Everything wraps up with the finale at 6:31, so plenty of time to hit the cookout and snag a spot for fireworks if it’s your thing.
Here are the picks for Saturday, July 4. Good luck.
TOM LAW (2/11, -$9.16):
1-Lovely Christina, Mashallah, Feminism.
2-Eponine, Accent, Vekoma View.
3-Fango Creek, Saint Tropez, Nonconsecutiveterms.
4-Lightning Strike, Baseball Lady, Grace And Grit.
5-Booked, Pocket Listing, Waggley.
6-Truman’s Commander, Van Vollenhoven, King Puck.
7-Ultimate Love, Abashiri, Kensington Lane.
8-Antiquarian, Stars And Stripes, Parchment Party.
9-Pacific Avenue, Remember Mamba, Blackmail.
10-Full Screen, Bourbon Day, Bank Frenzy.
11-Lyn’s Legacy, Morning Prayer, Zap That Ghost.
JOHN SHAPAZIAN (2/11, -$6.92):
1-Mashallah, Lovely Christina, Feminism.
2-Soundbite, Eponine, Accent.
3-Bourbiana, Shelzawa, Secretly Delightful.
4-Lightning Strike, Grace And Grit, Britain.
5-Pocket Listing, Ashcroft Lane, Booked.
6-Rhyton, Christobal, Counter Move.
7-Abashiri, Faithful Departed, Just Aloof.
8-Forged Steel, Antiquarian, Parchment Party.
9-Remember Mamba, Pacific Avenue, West End Kid.
10-Full Screen, Reasoned Analysis, Capital Idea.
11-Lyn’s Legacy, Silly Season, Suited Connectors.
CHARLES BEDARD (2/11, -$8.90):
1-Mashallah, Feminism, Lovely Christina.
2-Eponine, New Rose, Soundbite.
3-Secretly Delighted, Shelzawa, Moonlit.
4-Grace And Grit, Queens Cat, Lightning Strike.
5-Ashcroft Lane, Pocket Listing, Booked.
6-Joker On Fire, Mozambique, Stormy Birthday.
7-Abashiri, Ultimate Love, Time To Dream.
8-Stars And Stripes, Yo Daddy, Obstacle.
9-Touch Of Fire, West End Kid, Remember Mamba.
10-Full Screen, Bank Frenzy, Bramito.
11-Morning Prayer, Silly Season, Zap That Ghost.
ROB WHITLOCK (1-11, -$14.24):
1-Mashallah, Lovely Christina, Feminism.
2-Make You Mine, Eponine, Special Wood.
3-Shelzawa, Homeworker, Secretly Delighted.
4-Lightning Strike, Baseball Lady, Angel Gift.
5-Pocket Listing, Booked, Rasasi.
6-Truman’s Commander, Cristobal, Rhyton.
7-Faithful Departed, Abashiri, Kensington Lane.
8-Stars And Stripes, Tiztastic, Obstacle.
9-Pacific Avenue, Title Role, West End Kid.
10-Bourbon Day, Capital Idea, Flood Zone.
11-Silly Season, Nobody Knows, Morning Prayer.
JESSICA PAQUETTE (1-11, -$16.66):
1-Feminism, Mashallah, Lovely Christina.
2-Vekoma View, Accent, Eponine.
3-Secretly Delighted, Nonconsecutivetrms, Fango Creek.
4-Lightning Strike, Angel Gift, Britain.
5-Vissino, Booked, Pocket Listing.
6-King Puck, Rhyton, Van Vollenhoven.
7-Ultimate Love, Faithful Departed, Abashiri.
8-Antiquarian, Hit Show, Parchment Party.
9-Turf Star, Title Role, Touch Of Fire.
10-Bourbon Day, Tuscan Sky, Warp Nine.
11-Coach Of The Year, Morning Prayer, Nobody Knows.
