BELMONT Stakes entrant Mubtaahij continued his preparations for the race on Saturday, working five furlongs in 1:01.05 on the Belmont main track, the seventh-fastest time at the distance.

Mubtaahij (Irad Ortiz), stretches out on Belmont Main. (Mathew de Kock).

The colt was scheduled to work on the turf, but the move to the main track was made because the turf was too firm, said Trevor Brown, assistant to Mike de Kock. Brown said he was very pleased with the colt’s effort over the main track and is positive the UAE Derby (UAE-II) winner has taken more kindly to the surface compared to Churchill, where he finished eighth in the Kentucky Derby on May 2, his first start in the U.S.

Mubtaahij smells his new stall strap. (Trevor Brown).

With De Kock’s arrival to New York expected for Monday, June 1, Brown said the horse would have an easy week.

“We’ll freshen him up now this week,” Brown said. “We’ve been pretty hard on him (and) that’s our normal routine. Two weeks out, we work him hard and the last week freshen him up, but he’s going good and we’re very happy with him.”