---
title: "Aqueduct stages final live races after 132-year New York run"
canonical: "https://readhorseracing.com/2026/06/28/aqueduct-final-live-races-132-year-new-york-run/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Steve Yarmouth"
section: "News"
published: "2026-06-28T19:44:16Z"
modified: "2026-06-28T19:49:25Z"
---

# Aqueduct stages final live races after 132-year New York run

**Aqueduct Racetrack stages its final live races in Queens on Sunday, June 28, ending 132 years of New York thoroughbred history before NYRA shifts its circuit fully towards Belmont Park.**

The Ozone Park venue, opened in 1894 and long known as the Big A, reaches the end of live racing with a closing-weekend programme designed to mark the track’s place in American racing.

Its final day follows a wider NYRA plan to consolidate operations around the rebuilt Belmont Park, while Aqueduct remains open for simulcast wagering until September 7. The [Associated Press reported](https://apnews.com/article/c52bac4978ba99d2c921408ffdf05f13) that the switch is tied to Belmont’s redevelopment and the eventual return of Aqueduct’s 100-acre site for other use.

## Belmont shift closes a New York chapter

Aqueduct’s farewell carries obvious sporting weight because the track has been a winter and spring staple for generations of New York horsemen, punters and jockeys, including major figures who built careers on its circuit.

For NYRA, the move is also a structural reset. Belmont Park is due to become the year-round hub after its renovation, with Saratoga retaining its summer role and Aqueduct’s live programme brought to a close.

The final card gives the Big A one last race-day crowd, but the broader story is clear: New York racing is trading a familiar Queens home for a more concentrated Belmont future.