SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Todd Pletcher may not be running his most accomplished 3-year-old in the Belmont Stakes on June 8, but he could arguably be running his most exciting prospect when he sends out Mindframe in the third leg of Thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown to be run at Saratoga. On Thursday, Pletcher announced that Fierceness, last year’s champion 2-year-old male who finished 15th as the favorite in the Kentucky Derby, would bypass the Belmont and instead point to the Grade 1, $1 million Haskell on July 20 at Monmouth Park. Pletcher, who trains Fierceness for owner Mike Repole, feels the horse needed more time to rebound from his Derby experience. Meanwhile, Mindframe, who is owned in partnership by Repole and Vinnie and Teresa Viola, has won both of his starts impressively. On March 30, at Gulfstream Park, the day Fierceness won the Grade 1 Florida Derby by a record-setting 13 1/2 lengths, Mindframe won a seven-furlong maiden race by 13 3/4 lengths, earning a 103 Beyer Speed Figure, which is the highest figure recorded by any of the prospective Belmont Stakes entrants. On May 4, the day of the Kentucky Derby, Mindframe won a 1 1/16-mile, first-level allowance race at Churchill Downs by 7 1/2 lengths, earning a 97 Beyer. Had Fierceness bounced out of his Derby better than he apparently has and run in the Belmont, Mindframe was likely going to make his stakes debut in the Pegasus Stakes on June 15 at Monmouth Park. :: DRF Belmont Stakes Packages: Save up to 52% on PPs, Clocker Reports, Betting Strategies, and more In the Belmont, Mindframe is expected to take on Kentucky Derby winner and Preakness runner-up Mystik Dan, Preakness winner Seize the Grey, and Derby runner-up and Grade 1 winner Sierra Leone. As talented as he may be, is Mindframe up to that task in just his third career start? “That’s the $2 million question,” said Pletcher, who has four wins and eight seconds from 37 starters in 20 runnings of the Belmont Stakes. “He obviously has enormous talent, but he’s run in a maiden race and a mile-and-a-sixteenth allowance race. He’s running against the best 3-year-olds in the crop. They’re all more seasoned and more experienced than him. It’s asking a lot, but you’re talking about a horse that’s not only winning by impressive margins but running pretty fast times as well. [Speed] figures suggest he certainly fits with the top of the group.” Mindframe is a Maryland-bred son of Constitution and one of four winners thrown by the listed stakes-winning dam Walk of Stars. Mindframe had one workout late last August and didn’t reappear on the work tab until January at Palm Beach Downs. Mindframe, who will be ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., is expected to be one of three horses Pletcher will enter in the Belmont Stakes, a race in which he has had at least one starter in 11 straight years. His other two are Antiquarian, winner of the Grade 3 Peter Pan Stakes, and Protective, a maiden who has finished third in the Wood Memorial and Peter Pan. Antiquarian, a son of Preservationist owned by Centennial Farms, has made four starts, winning twice. Antiquarian finished sixth in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby after breaking through the starting gate prior to the official start of the race. He rebounded with a professional three-quarter-length victory in the Peter Pan, which this year was run at 1 1/8 miles around two turns at Aqueduct. Typically, that race is run at 1 1/8 miles around one turn at Belmont Park. “I thought his Peter Pan was back to what we were thinking he’s capable of doing,” said Pletcher, who called the gate issue at the Louisiana Derby “uncharacteristic” for the horse. “He’s another one I think the mile and a quarter suits.” John Velazquez will ride Antiquarian. :: Bet the Belmont Stakes with confidence! Join DRF Bets and get a $200 deposit match bonus and FREE DRF Past Performances! Protective, by Medaglia d’Oro, was beaten two lengths by Antiquarian in the Peter Pan after finishing 3 3/4 lengths behind Resilience in the Wood Memorial. “Thought he ran well in the Peter Pan, got a different trip than Antiquarian,” Pletcher said. “Irad felt like if he had maybe gotten out in the clear a little sooner, it might have made a difference. He’s trained well, we think he’ll like the mile and a quarter. We figure there’s plenty of maiden opportunities if it doesn’t work out.” Tyler Gaffalione will ride Protective in the Belmont. Speaking of the aforementioned Resilience, trainer Bill Mott said that horse is now back in the picture for a start in the Belmont Stakes after Mott said last Sunday he was leaning against it. Resilience finished sixth in the Kentucky Derby, and Mott seemed skeptical about him handling the 1 1/4 miles. “If he does handle it, that’s great, if he doesn’t, then you know for sure about the distance,” Mott said. Mystik Dan likely to be entered During a national conference call Thursday, trainer Kenny McPeek said that if Mystik Dan works well this weekend at Saratoga and comes out of it well, he would likely run in the Belmont Stakes. “We’re going to get our horse ready and assuming everything goes right over the next few days, through the weekend, we’re looking forward to being part of it,” McPeek said during a national conference call held by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. “I’m pretty confident that we’ll get through this weekend and everything will go right. I’ve gone back to what I did before the Preakness – I don’t need to make a decision right away. He’s a horse that we want to pay close attention to. He’s a little tricky in that he’s a quiet type, and we don’t want to miss anything.” :: DRF's Belmont Stakes Headquarters: Contenders, latest news, and more If Mystik Dan and Preakness winner Seize the Grey both run – the latter is confirmed to start – it would mark the first meeting in the Belmont between a Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner since Orb and Oxbow faced each other in 2013. Mystik Dan won the Kentucky Derby by a nose over Sierra Lone – who also is pointing to the Belmont – and then finished second in the Preakness, 2 1/4 lengths behind Seize the Grey. McPeek reiterated that if, for some reason, he feels like Mystik Dan shouldn’t run in the Belmont then he would strongly consider running Kentucky Oaks winner Thorpedo Anna in the race. If Mystik Dan runs in the Belmont, Thorpedo Anna would run in Friday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Acorn. Both Mystik Dan and Thorpedo Anna are in Saratoga, where McPeek plans to have a string all summer. McPeek said he likes the idea of running Mystik Dan in the Belmont as opposed to skipping it and waiting for a race like the Grade 1 Haskell on July 20 at Monmouth Park, which would require a ship. Ultimately, McPeek wants to run Mystik Dan in the Grade 1 Travers on Aug. 24 at Saratoga and possibly the Pennsylvania Derby before the Breeders’ Cup Classic. “The Belmont actually seems to be a little more attractive because I don’t have to ship. It is Grade 1, obviously the prestige is a no-brainer,” said McPeek, who won the 2002 Belmont with longshot Sarava. “We want to run, we do. We just got to make sure that all boxes are checked, t’s are crossed, and i’s are dotted.” :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.