ELMONT, N.Y. – Fifteen years after he won the Belmont Stakes with a filly, Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher will try to do it again in the 154th running of the Belmont next Saturday. Pletcher, who won the 2007 Belmont with Rags to Riches, all but confirmed Nest, the Kentucky Oaks runner-up, as a starter for this year’s Belmont following a Saturday workout over the Belmont training track. Nest went a half-mile in 49.89 seconds, per Daily Racing Form clocker Mike Welsch, in company with Mo Donegal, the Kentucky Derby fifth-place finisher who also is running in the Belmont. “I was pleased with what I saw,” Pletcher said. “I would say all things being equal she’s given us every indication that she’s ready to give it a try.” Nest and Mo Donegal were two of four Belmont Stakes contenders who worked Saturday at Belmont Park, along with We the People and Skippylongstocking. Two additional candidates – Barber Road and Howling Time – worked Saturday at Churchill Downs. As of Saturday, there are 10 horses being considered for the Belmont Stakes with entries taken and post positions to be drawn Tuesday. Pletcher said when he and the owners – Aron Wellman, the president of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, which owns Nest in partnership with Mike Repole – nominated Nest to the Triple Crown it was with the Belmont Stakes, run at 1 1/2 miles in mind. :: DRF's Belmont Stakes Headquarters: Get the latest news, info on contenders, past performances, picks, and more  “Strongly-bred for the distance, she’s always been a good galloping filly that doesn’t pull hard, has a lot of the characteristics of horses that tend to do well at longer distances,” said Pletcher, who in 2013 sent out the filly Unlimited Budget to a fifth-place finish in the Belmont. The gallop-outs past the wire have been the best part of Nest’s last two workouts. On May 27, Nest had a strong three-furlong gallop-out following a five-furlong move in 1:03.18, also in company with Mo Donegal. Saturday, Nest galloped out five furlongs in 1:02.29 and six furlongs in 1:14.18, after finishing about a length back of Mo Donegal. She began the work two lengths behind Mo Donegal. In 2007, Rags to Riches entered the Belmont off a dominant performance in the Kentucky Oaks, which followed a superb victory in the Santa Anita Oaks. This year, Nest won the Grade 1 Ashland and then finished second to Secret Oath in the Kentucky Oaks. Pletcher said his previous success with Rags to Riches in the Belmont “has given us confidence to try it with a filly knowing that we had success before, and really with this filly she’s always given us the impression she wants more distance. She’s bred that way, she trains that way. I think this is a good year to give it a try.” Jose Ortiz will ride Nest in the Belmont as her regular rider, Irad Ortiz Jr., is committed to Mo Donegal. Mo Donegal is following a similar path to previous Pletcher Belmont Stakes winners Palace Malice and Tapwrit. Both ran in the Derby and skipped the Preakness. Jose Ortiz rode Tapwrit to victory in the Belmont. Similar to Tapwrit in 2016, Mo Donegal did not have a great trip in the Kentucky Derby. He got away slowly from the rail, was too far back coming under the wire the first time, and then went about 10 wide in the lane. He was beaten 3 3/4 lengths by Rich Strike. “When things started to open up and he started to make his run, he had to go really wide and Barber Road was kind of laying on him the whole way down the lane,” Pletcher said. “I thought he dug in and kept trying, ran hard to the wire but had a little too much to do.” Earlier in the morning, We the People, the Grade 3 Peter Pan Stakes winner, went a half-mile over the main track in 47.41 seconds, according to Welsch, who had We the People’s final quarter in 23.31. He galloped out five furlongs in 1:00.17 and out again in 1:14.37. Rodolphe Brisset, trainer of We the People, was aboard the horse and had him three paths off the rail. :: Bet the Belmont Stakes with confidence! Join DRF Bets and get a $250 deposit match bonus, $10 free bet, and access to FREE DRF Formulator! The main track was fast but still had some moisture in it. “That track will carry you when it has moisture in it,” said Brisset, who worked here many years as an exercise rider for Bill Mott. “Even without looking at the time, he was really smooth today. For him being that calm, it’s a really good sign.” About an hour after We the People went, Skippylongstocking, fifth in the Preakness, went five furlongs in 1:02.56, per Welsch. Working by himself, Skippylongstocking got his last quarter in 25.53 under jockey Manny Franco, who will ride the horse for the first time in the Belmont."We weren't looking for much, he's fit,” trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. said. “We're just trying to maintain. Basically a long and steady work in around 1:01 and change. He'll usually work just as fast as you want whether alone or in company. He's coming back in three weeks, which is why we didn't put him in company this morning." After galloping two mornings over a sloppy surface, Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike got his first feel for a fast Belmont main track Saturday morning and relished it. He was moving smoothly over the surface while galloping two miles under exercise rider Gabriel Lagunes. “He took to it pretty good, he was zipping along,” trainer Eric Reed said. “I was real pleased. Tomorrow, if he goes out there and does the same thing and he comes back good I won’t be worried about the track.” Barber Road works from gate; Rosario picks up mount At Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., Barber Road breezed five furlongs out of the starting gate Saturday morning in 1:00.80 in his final work for the Belmont. Sixth in the Kentucky Derby with a career-best 94 Beyer Speed Figure last out, Barber Road worked in company with an unraced 4-year-old gelding named A Little Wild when galloping out well in front. Afterward, John Ortiz, who trains Barber Road for WSS Racing, revealed that Joel Rosario has picked up the mount for the Belmont, replacing Reylu Gutierrez. Ortiz also said Barber Road will not race in blinkers after eight straight races wearing them. Ortiz said he and the owners are “very excited about” securing the services of Rosario, the 2021 Eclipse Award-winning jockey and a two-time Belmont winner (2014, 2019). "He’s won the race twice before and knows the track,” Ortiz said. “We’re optimizing our efforts here.” :: Get ready for the Belmont Stakes with DRF Past performances, picks, clocker reports, and betting strategies! Gutierrez rode Barber Road in seven of the colt’s nine career starts, including as the jockey’s first-ever Derby mount. “We’re very happy and very proud of Reylu for being such a good team member and always looking out for the horse’s best interests,” Ortiz said. “He has been very professional.” The work from the gate was the first in nearly a year for Barber Road, whose respectable Derby run was preceded by four straight stakes at Oaklawn Park in which he finished second three times and third once. “We just wanted to wake him up a little,” Ortiz said. “His typical thing is to be slow out of the gate. We want to make sure he comes out with the field and doesn’t spot them 20 lengths.” Barber Road is scheduled to leave Sunday for New York and arrive before dawn Monday morning, Ortiz said. – additional reporting by Mike Welsch and Marty McGee 154th Belmont Stakes, Grade 1, $1.5 million, 1 1/2 miles, June 11 Horse Trainer Jockey Last Race Barber Road John Ortiz Joel Rosario Ky Derby, 6th Creative Minister Kenny McPeek Brian Hernandez Jr. Preakness, 3rd Ethereal Road   D. Wayne Lukas  Luis Saez  Sir Barton, 1st Golden Glider Mark Casse Dylan Davis Peter Pan, 2nd Howling Time Dale Romans Joe Talamo CD OC, 1st Mo Donegal Todd Pletcher Irad Ortiz Jr. Ky Derby, 5th Nest     Todd Pletcher Jose Ortiz Ky Oaks, 2nd Rich Strike Eric Reed Sonny Leon Ky Derby, 1st Skippylongstocking Saffie Joseph Jr. Manny Franco Preakness, 5th We the People Rodolphe Brisset  Flavien Prat  Peter Pan, 1st