Sports

2026 Jockey Club Gold Cup explained: What to know, how to watch Belmont's return to racing with Forever Young

Nairavoice · Sep 16, 2026 · 5 min read

After three years and more than $450 million worth of work, the New York Racing Association is ready to open the curtain on the renovated Belmont Park on Long Island.

Highlighting the return to racing is the 108th running of the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup. The race features the New York debut of Japanese star Forever Young, the reigning Breeders’ Cup Classic winner. The 5-year-old horse is a 3-5 morning-line favorite in Friday’s Gold Cup, which will be Race 5 on a nine-race card.

Before the Gold Cup, here is a guide to the race that headlines Belmont’s return.

2026 Jockey Club Gold Cup snapshot

When:4:14 p.m. ET, Friday
Where: Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.
Purse:$1 million
Race conditions: 1 ¼ miles on dirt for 3-year-olds and up
TV/streaming info: Fox, Fox One

Which horses are running in the Jockey Club Gold Cup?

Jockey Club Gold Cup horses, post positions, odds

Baeza (Bill Mott, Junior Alvarado, 9-2)
Stars and Stripes (Bill Mott, John Velazquez, 15-1)
Chunk of Gold (SCRATCHED)
Phileas Fogg (Gustavo Rodriguez, Kendrick Carmouche, 4-1)
Banishing (SCRATCHED)
Render Judgment (Kenny McPeek, Manny Franco, 20-1)
Forever Young (Yoshito Yahagi, Ryusei Sakai, 3-5)

What is the Jockey Club Gold Cup?

The Jockey Club Gold Cup is one of New York’s most prestigious races for older horses. A fixture in the late summer or early fall, the race has drawn some of the biggest names in the history of the sport. In recent years, it’s served as a key prep race for connections hoping to get horses ready for the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

The Jockey Club Gold Cup has been run annually since 1919. It’s been held at Belmont Park for the vast majority of its existence, though it was run at Aqueduct for much of the 1960s and early 1970s, while the 2021 through 2025 editions of the race were held at Saratoga Race Course.

The race is named after The Jockey Club, one of the oldest and most prominent industry-wide organizations in Thoroughbred racing.

When is the Jockey Club Gold Cup?

This year’s Jockey Club Gold Cup will take place on Friday, Sept. 18.

What time is the Jockey Club Gold Cup post time?

The Jockey Club Gold Cup is the fifth race on Friday with a post time of 4:14 p.m. ET.

What channel is the Jockey Club Gold Cup on?

The Jockey Club Gold Cup will be shown on Fox.

Throughout Friday’s Jockey Club Gold Cup card, racing will be shown on several of Fox’s family of networks.

Jockey Club Gold Cup Day TV schedule

1-3 p.m., FS2
3-4:30 p.m., Fox
4:30-6 p.m., FS2
6-7 p.m., FS1

Where is the Jockey Club Gold Cup run?

Belmont Park, located in Elmont, N.Y., is the home of the Jockey Club Gold Cup?

Where is Elmont?

Elmont is located in Nassau County on New York’s Long Island, just along the border of the New York City borough of Queens.

Who is the favorite in this year’s Jockey Club Gold Cup?

Forever Young is the favorite in this year’s Jockey Club Gold Cup.

The Japanese-based horse has earned more than $31 million in his career, with notable wins including the 2025 Breeders’ Cup Classic and each of the last two editions of the $20 million Saudi Cup. The Jockey Club Gold Cup will be his first-ever start in New York and just his fourth in the United States.

Forever Young is the heavy favorite, with Phileas Fogg and Baeza receiving mild support on the morning line.

What else is happening on Jockey Club Gold Cup Day?

The Gold Cup is the only stakes race on Friday’s Belmont Park card, but the track’s first day of racing in more than three years will also include a performance from country music star Dierks Bentley.

Who won last year’s Jockey Club Gold Cup?

Antiquarian won last year’s Jockey Club Gold Cup for trainer Todd Pletcher in a race marred by a scary early fall.

In the 2025 Gold Cup, a multi-horse collision in the race’s opening moments led to jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. losing his mount on Mindframe and briefly balancing himself by holding onto the horse next to him before tumbling to the track. Ortiz avoided serious injury. Kendrick Carmouche, the jockey of Phileas Fogg, was suspended by the stewards for his riding, which was ruled to have led to the collision.