ELMONT, N.Y. – The Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap is one of the rare significant races missing from the résumé of Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. Starting with Taylor’s Special in 1985 and through Speaker’s Corner last year, Mott has run in 13 editions of the Met Mile with the best finish a trio of third-place finishes, including last year when Speaker’s Corner ran third behind Flightline. Mott hopes to fill in the blank Saturday at Belmont Park when he sends out Cody’s Wish as the probable favorite against eight others in a terrific renewal of the historic race. “It’s a race I’ve always wanted to win,” Mott said. “I’d love to put it on Cody’s résumé. I’d also like to put it on my own.” Cody’s Wish has won three consecutive Grade 1 races. His bond with young Cody Dorman, who is inflicted with the genetic disorder Wolf-Hirschborn Syndrome, is one of the feel-good stories in racing. Cody’s Wish has won eight of his last nine starts and is 6 for 6 at one mile. He comes into the Met Mile off a dominant 4 3/4-length victory in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs Stakes, at seven furlongs, five weeks ago. Cody’s Wish proved he could get a two-turn mile when he captured last November’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Keeneland, but he’s 5 for 5 at a one-turn mile. :: Bet the Belmont Stakes with confidence! Join DRF Bets and get a $250 deposit match bonus, $10 free bet, and FREE DRF Formulator! “I think having a chance to get his legs under him down that long backstretch is good for him,” Mott said. Following the Churchill Downs, Cody’s Wish shipped to Saratoga, where he has fired three consecutive bullet workouts over the Oklahoma training track. Mott said the fast works were not by design, adding, “You’d rather them want to do it than not want to do it.” Cody’s Wish drew the rail and will be ridden by Junior Alvarado. He is the 126-pound highweight, conceding four to seven pounds to the field. Among the horses Cody’s Wish will have to pass in order to win the Met Mile is Dr. Schivel, a California invader from the barn of Mark Glatt. If Dr. Schivel beats Cody’s Wish, Mott may only have himself to blame. Dr. Schivel rerouted to the Met when Mott opted to run his champion sprinter Elite Power in Saturday’s Grade 2 True North at 6 1/2 furlongs instead of the Met Mile. Dr. Schivel won a Grade 1 going seven furlongs at 2 and will try to use his speed to wire this field under Irad Ortiz Jr. “Our intention is to be on the lead, see if he can get the mile distance,” said Mark Glatt, the trainer of Dr. Schivel. “I think our first thoughts were to run in the True North. When Elite Power decided to run in the sprint . . . it was Elite Power or Cody’s Wish, pick your poison.” Glatt noted that the one-turn configuration “played a role in our decision-making.” Repo Rocks has won five of his last six starts, including a 5 1/4-length victory in the Grade 3 Westchester, the one-mile local prep for the Met Mile. “Off his previous races he deserves a shot, that’s what we’re going to give him,” trainer Jamie Ness said. “The one-turn mile distance may be his best and I feel good about his preparation up to this point.” In his lone loss under Ness, Repo Rocks finished second to Doppelganger in the Grade 1 Carter going seven furlongs at Aqueduct. Doppelganger is 3 for 3 since coming into the barn of Brittany Russell. White Abarrio has taken a circuitous route to the Met Mile. He was scratched from the Carter due to a temperature. He was cross-entered in the Westchester and Churchill Downs, but his connections chose the latter. White Abarrio was forced to scratch from the Churchill Downs after his trainer, Saffie Joseph Jr., had two horses suffer unexplained sudden deaths at that track, which led to all his starters being scratched by Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week. The owners of the horse moved White Abarrio to trainer Rick Dutrow Jr., who last month returned from a 10-year suspension handed him by the New York regulators for a history of past indiscretions. White Abarrio has put in two solid works at Belmont and is drawn nicely in post 9. Zandon is the other Grade 1 winner in the field, that victory coming in the Blue Grass Stakes at 3. He has not won since, but was second to Repo Rocks in the Westchester. Hoist the Gold is 2 for 19 but finished second to Cody’s Wish in the Churchill Downs. The two carried level weights (123 pounds) that day. Hoist the Gold gets seven pounds from Cody’s Wish on Saturday. Luis Saez rides for trainer Dallas Stewart from post 4. :: DRF Belmont Stakes Package: Save on PPs, Clocker Reports, Betting Strategies, and more. The last time Charge It ran a mile at Belmont, he won the Grade 3 Dwyer by 23 lengths here last July. He turns back from 1 1/8 miles to a one-turn mile Saturday. “In the morning you’d match him up against anyone,” trainer Todd Pletcher said. “He’s another Tapit that may still be piecing it all together. He has the talent to do just about anything. Now we just need him to do it in a big spot.” Slow Down Andy is a three-time graded stakes winner. He hasn’t run since finishing third, beaten just 1 3/4 lengths, by Cody’s Wish in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. The Met Mile goes as race 10 on the 13-race card. The winner of the Met Mile will earn a fees-paid berth to the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile through the Win and You're In program. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.