Belmont Park Racecourse is the premier venue for metropolitan horse racing in Western Australian during Winter. From late May through to October, Belmont hosts Wednesday and Saturday racing most weeks, before racing returns to Ascot Racecourse in the Spring. While Ascot plays host to WA’s three Group 1 races each year, Belmont is the home of several feature race days itself.
Located approximately 5km from the Perth CBD, Belmont Racecourse is a great venue for watching thoroughbred racing. It is just a 10-minute drive from the heart of Perth. Fully-enclosed facilities make it the perfect venue for racegoers on a cold winter’s day. The beautiful Swan River surrounds the racecourse and aerial shots of the racecourse are a spectacular sight.
The Belmont track dimensions are as follows:
* Circumference: 1699m
* Home Straight: 333m
* Direction: anti-clockwise
With a slightly longer home straight than Ascot, horses running on from the back of the field are generally better suited to Belmont. The track has terrific drainage and is considered one of the best wet-weather tracks in Australia.
Three Group 3 races are currently staged at Belmont Racecourse with each feature event held at weight-for-age. They are currently held in June, starting with the Belmont Sprint over 1400m. A fortnight later the Hyperion Stakes takes place over 1600m, before the Strickland Stakes is run over 2000m. All three feature races carry $150,000 in prize money.
In 2018, the Justin Warwick-trained Material Man captured all three Group races in succession. He is the only horse to capture the Belmont Stakes-Hyperion Stakes-Strickland Stakes treble.
Several listed races are also staged at Belmont Racecourse. They include the Belmont Newmarket (1200m), Idyllic Prince Stakes (1300m), Farnley Stakes (1400m), Birthday Stakes (1200m), Beaufine Stakes (1000m), Belmont Guineas (1600m), H.G. Bolton Sprint (1200m), Aquanita Stakes (2000m), Belmont Oaks (2000m) and Belmont Classic (2200m).
Belmont Racecourse dates back to 1910 when the venue held its first harness racing meeting. Between 1911 and 1919, Belmont Racecourse was also used for aeroplane flights and was a regular landing area until moving to Langley Park in 1919.
