We welcome back horse racing expert Aaron Halterman from Racing Dudes. With the Triple Crown season firing on all cylinders, we dove deep into the chaotic landscape of modern horse racing, tracking everything from major facility overhauls to the upcoming Belmont Stakes. There is a ton of local interest right here in the Springfield area—especially with a hometown favorite expected to make waves very soon!

The Preakness Stakes’ Weird Vibe at Laurel Park

We started by asking Aaron about the bizarre atmosphere surrounding this year’s Preakness Stakes. Because of massive construction, the historic Pimlico Race Course has essentially been torn down for a total rebuild. This forced the race over to Laurel Park, which Aaron noted felt completely different. Instead of the usual roaring crowd of 100,000 screaming fans, only about 4,800 spectators were on hand. While it made for an eerie television broadcast, Aaron pointed out that the horses actually appreciated the quiet paddock and calm environment. On the track, Napoleon Solo bounced back from a couple of poor three-year-old performances to secure a huge victory, holding off Iron Honor and Chip Poncho.

Springfield’s Own Renegade Sets Sights on Saratoga

Looking ahead, the excitement is boiling over for local racing enthusiasts right here in Springfield. The Belmont Stakes is moving to Saratoga this year due to ongoing multi-million dollar renovations at Belmont Park. Because Saratoga isn’t equipped for a mile-and-a-half distance, the race will be run at a shorter mile-and-a-quarter. Aaron expects this to be the best leg of the Triple Crown yet, featuring a major rematch between Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo, fourth-place finisher Chief Wallaby, and Springfield’s own standout horse, Renegade! Aaron tells us Renegade is highly likely to open as the betting favorite up at Saratoga.

The Multi-Million Dollar Facility Wars

The conversation turned toward sports infrastructure, a topic we love to debate on the show. Aaron broke down the incredible future of the new Belmont Park, which is slated to open this September. The state-of-the-art facility will feature a grandstand alongside four distinct racing surfaces: two turf tracks, a dirt track, and a synthetic track designed to handle brutal New York winters. We pushed Aaron on why the New York Racing Association didn’t just use Aqueduct instead of moving to Saratoga. He explained that Aqueduct has unfortunately been left to run down and simply couldn’t handle the massive crowds before it officially shuts its doors forever.

Dark Clouds and Federal Indictments

It wouldn’t be a true session of The Starting Lineup without hitting the hot-button issues. We asked Aaron about the major federal indictments looming over the top jockeys in the sport, the Ortiz brothers. Jose Ortiz just won the Kentucky Derby weeks ago, but a viral video linking them to a cockfighting ring in Puerto Rico has drawn massive scrutiny from national media like USA Today. To make matters worse, Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Edwin Diaz is also tied to the exact same investigation. With the sport under the national microscope for the next few weeks, Aaron expects this serious situation to get much bigger.