100-day meet gets underway at Belterra

With the eyes of the Thoroughbred world on Louisville this week, spring begins for another racetrack near the Ohio River as well.

Belterra Park in Cincinnati – across the river and less than two hours from Churchill Downs by highway – begins its live racing season Friday. Belterra will run 100 live racing dates in 2026, generally on a Wednesday-Saturday schedule.

Belterra has scheduled 15 stakes this season, highlighted by the first Best of Ohio state showcase of the year on May 29, with five stakes worth $100,000 each. Each of the state’s three Thoroughbred tracks hosts one such card, with Thistledown in North Randall following in August and Mahoning Valley in Youngstown hosting the fall card in October.

Belterra is the only one of the state’s three tracks with a turf course, thus making it a noteworthy stop – and a particularly lucrative one for grass runners on Best of Ohio Day. That card includes the Sydney Gendelman Memorial for older horses on the turf and the Green Carpet Stakes for 3-year-olds.

The Best of Ohio card also includes the Babst/Palacios Memorial for sprinters, the Diana for female sprinters, and the Norm Barron Queen City Oaks for 3-year-old fillies – all on the main track.

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