Litfin's preview: Tight race for jockey title as meet closes

Down to the wire

Todd Pletcher has clinched the training title, but Belmont’s spring-summer meet riding crown is still up for grabs between defending champ Javier Castellano and Irad Ortiz Jr., who has won the last two inner-track crowns at Aqueduct.

Each rode a winner Friday. The Ken Ramsey homebred Granny’s Kitten ($9.40) was an impressive debut winner with Ortiz for trainer Mike Maker. Castellano countered with a victory on Knox ($5.60), first time off a claim by Chad Brown.

Castellano holds a 51-49 lead heading into the final weekend, but he will be at Delaware Park to ride Princess of Sylmar in today’s Delaware Handicap and is named on only one mount Sunday.

Meanwhile, Ortiz has nine mounts at Belmont today, many of which are live. Here’s a handy-dandy checklist (with morning-line odds):

Race 1 – Zane (5-1): Second back from a layoff; ran the field’s top turf Beyer of 2014 at Gulfstream Park in March.

Race 2 – Devious Maddy (2-1): Likely to vie for favoritism with Saythreehailmary’s, as she steps up off a maiden win in the mud.

Race 3 – Beyond Empire (3-1): Been knocking at the door with three in-the-money finishes in the preliminary allowance ranks.

Race 5 – Startripenterprise (6-1): Turf to dirt for trainer Nick Esler, who is 3 for 6 with horses making that surface switch in 2013-14.

Race 6 – Asset Inflation (7-2): Logical threat after being claimed from first start in 11 months; post 12 the main concern.

Race 7 – My Four Rewards (15-1): Second back from a layoff and dropping from allowance to claiming company; chance at a big price.

Race 8 – Divine Child (7-2): Broke through the gate as the 8-5 choice at Monmouth in last; prior outing was a win here opening day with career-best 92 Beyer Figure.

Race 9 – Reflecting (8-1): Turns back in distance for the Bowling Green after a big race for third in the two-mile Belmont Gold Cup.

Race 10 – Molly Jordan (4-1): Off the board twice at Saratoga last year; returns against maiden claimers first time for David Jacobson.

Bowling Green: Final graded stakes of meet

Grandeur, who was far back early and ran his last six furlongs in under 1:09 seconds in the Manhattan, gives six rivals anywhere from two to 11 pounds as the high-weight runner in today’s Grade 2, $200,000 Bowling Green, the final graded stakes of the meet.

Boisterous, who won the Grade 1 Man o’ War for former trainer Shug McGaughey when it was run in this spot on the calendar last year, flattened out after making up 10 lengths through the middle fractions of the Manhattan and looks to rebound for Gary Barber and Todd Pletcher, who purchased the horse at the end of his 6-year-old campaign.

McGaughey, who has won eight graded turf stakes at Belmont since 2008, including the 2012 Bowling Green with Air Support, sends out Reflecting, a Phipps Stable homebred who was in some traffic rallying for third in the Belmont Gold Cup.

Horse to watch

THREE ALARM FIRE
Trainer: Tom Albertrani
Last race: July 11, 2nd
Finish: 2nd by 2 1/2
Beyer: 83

First-time starter broke a step slow, rushed up wide down the backstretch to vie for the lead, and held on determinedly to the wire.