WTH? What happened to the mile and a half distance? This turns the Belmont into just another race. Has Fauci decreed that horses lungs become susceptible to the flu if they run over 9 furlongs?
The race was moved because if it remained the third leg of the Triple Crown, it could have conflicted with the Breeders’ Cup which in the eyes of many is the most important race day/weekend of the year. The Breeders’ Cup. is in early November and with the Ky. Derby moved to early September, the traditional gaps could have made for tough calls for connections to either race in New York in say late October or in Kentucky (Br.Cup) in early November and most people would have opted for the matter.
The length was changed because of the shift to being the first race of the Triple Crown. Some had said they were leery of sending a 3-year-old horse into a longer race this time of the year.
It is part of the prep work.