While Saratoga is the most powerful brand in the New York Racing Association’s portfolio, Aqueduct ranks a distant third. How will a merger of Belmont Park and Aqueduct fare among horseplayers and horsemen? That will be learned beginning Thursday when the 28-day Belmont Park fall meeting takes place nine miles west at Aqueduct. With the first phase of a multi-year project under way designed to modernize Belmont Park – and ultimately condense racing downstate to one facility – Belmont’s fall meet this year and probably next will be conducted at Aqueduct. The ongoing project at Belmont involves the construction of vehicular and pedestrian tunnels that will lead next year to the renovation of Belmont’s three surfaces and likely the installation of a fourth, a synthetic track. The long-term goal is to allow fan access to the infield. The tunnels and associated infrastructure projects are likely to be completed in time for the 2023 Belmont spring/summer meet to be conducted starting in late April. The surface renovations are likely to begin following that meet and will likely force the 2023 Belmont fall meet to also be run at Aqueduct. Then there is the construction of a new grandstand at Belmont, for which the financing and time frame have not yet been established. “I’m excited that we can put ourselves in a position that we can begin the redevelopment of Belmont Park with the racetracks specifically,” Dave O’Rourke, NYRA’s president and CEO, said in a recent interview. “Ultimately, we are a racing organization, content producer, so these tracks are the most important component to the facility. So, yeah, I’m excited we’re able to move forward on that. :: Bet the races with a $200 First Deposit Match and FREE Formulator PPs! Join DRF Bets. “To do that requires an inconvenience to everyone, which would be we’re running longer at Aqueduct or skipping Belmont fall.” All of the major stakes races typically run at the Belmont fall meet will be held at Aqueduct with a few tweaks in distances and/or configurations. For instance, the Grade 1 Woodward will be run as a two-turn, 1 1/8-mile race, which actually makes it more attractive to the connections of Life Is Good, who will use that Oct. 1 race as a stepping-stone to the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 5 at Keeneland. In total, there will be 41 stakes worth $9.9 million offered at the Belmont at the Big A meet, which includes six automatic qualifiers to corresponding Breeders’ Cup races in November at Keeneland. The BC qualifiers include the Grade 1 Champagne and Grade 2 Miss Grillo (both on Oct. 1), the Grade 1 Frizette and Grade 2 Pilgrim (both on Oct. 2), the Grade 2 Vosburgh (Oct. 8), and the Grade 3 Futurity (Oct. 9). The two Aqueduct turf courses should be in pristine condition as the meet begins. The two courses are used sparingly during the normal course of the year, with 37 turf races having been run in April. Due to the lack of turf racing at the Churchill Downs September meet, some trainers who were based in Saratoga for the summer have kept horses in New York for the fall, among them Phil Antonacci, Cherie DeVaux, Kenny McPeek, and Brendan Walsh. Jose Camejo, who typically has been based in New Jersey and went 3-4-3 from 14 starters at Saratoga, is planning to keep about 25 head in New York for the fall and winter. Camejo claimed 15 horses at the Saratoga meet. :: Get Daily Racing Form Past Performances – the exclusive home of Beyer Speed Figures The New York Racing Association is offering a trio of bonus programs to entice participation at the meet. First, horses who made their most recent start at Saratoga and race at the Belmont at Big A meet can earn their connections $1,000 ($500 to owner, $500 to trainer) if they do not finish in the top three in their first start here. Stakes races do not qualify, and the bonus would not be paid out if the horse is placed on the poor performance or veterinarian’s list following the race. Second, trainers stabled at Belmont or Saratoga will receive a $200 bonus per start at this 28-day meet, with the same caveat regarding the poor performance/vet list. Lastly, owners who ship in from out of town to run at the Belmont at Big A meet will receive a $1,000 credit toward shipping expenses. The bonus, which excludes Thursday’s two steeplechase races, has the same caveats regarding poor performance/vet’s list. Racing will be conducted Thursdays through Sundays. First post will be 1 p.m. through Oct. 2, with the exception of Sept. 22-23 when it will be 2:05 p.m. From Oct. 6 through Oct. 30, first post will be 12:35 p.m. Admission to Aqueduct, adjacent to the Resorts World Casino, is free. Free parking is available in all Resorts World surface lots and the Resorts World garage. Due to construction work at JFK Airport, parking is not available to the general public in either the clubhouse or Turf and Field lots.