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The top five Belmont Stakes, as selected by Newsday's Ed McNamara:

1. Secretariat, 1973. Big Red stepped into another dimension with a 31-length blowout that put him in the thoroughbred pantheon. His time of 2:24 set a record for 11/2 miles on dirt as he became the first Triple Crown winner since Citation in 1948. Daily Racing Form columnist Charles Hatton said, ``His only point of reference is himself.''

2. Affirmed-Alydar, 1978. The rivals. You can't think of one without the other. Affirmed led throughout under 18-year-old Steve Cauthen and barely held off Alydar, ridden by Jorge Velasquez, in one of the most compelling stretch drives ever. The margin was a head, the closest victory in the Belmont by any of the 11 Triple Crown winnners.

3. Count Fleet, 1943. In a walkover with company, 1-20 favorite Count Fleet led all the way under Johnny Longden in a 25-length romp over two hopelessly outclassed chasers. Locking up a Triple Crown has never been easier.

4. Colin, 1908. A rainstorm obscured the horses until they reached the stretch, and Colin won by a head even though his rider, Joe Notter, misjudged the finish line. Second was Fair Play, sire of Man O' War, the original Big Red and winner of the 1920 Belmont. Colin finished his career unbeaten in 15 races.

5. Sherluck, 1961. Not for what he did, but for what he paid: $132.10. In a longshot player's dream, Braulio Baeza guided this 65-1 shot to a 2 1/4-length win over 17-1 Globemaster, with 14-1 Guadalcanal third. Sad to say, exacta and triple betting were not available yet.

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