While rain and storms target the Ohio Valley and southern mid-Atlantic this weekend, dry weather and sunshine should grace Belmont Park, New York, for the third leg of the 2018 Triple Crown on Saturday.

"Whereas Saturday looked showery and perhaps stormy a few days ago, dry weather and at least partial sunshine now appear to be the better bet," according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Kyle Elliott.

"The New York City area, including Elmont, should remain displaced well to the north and east of any rain on Saturday."

Dry weather is also expected for much up upstate New York and New England, while flooding downpours may occur from the Ohio Valley to the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., areas.

Ultimately, the exact track of the batch of showers and thunderstorms will determine the northern extent of the rain on Saturday. Regardless, the race should proceed high and dry, with only a few showers anticipated to return by Sunday.

"Belmont has a sandy consistency to the track and drains very well," according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Brian Thompson.

"With no rain in the forecast, the track will not be sloppy like the first two legs of the triple crown were," Thompson said.

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Fans heading to Belmont Park on Long Island, New York, should allow some extra time to get there and be patient when heading home as one or both parts of the trip may be wet, especially well to the south and west of the city.

With dry conditions on tap for the race, the third leg of the Triple Crown will be the first of the three races to not be run in wet conditions.

Both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness were run in the mud and the rain in 2018. The 2018 Kentucky Derby was the wettest on record with more than 3 inches of rain. Rain fell every day for a week leading up to and including the Preakness at Pimlico in Baltimore.

Justify with Mike Smith atop wins the the 143rd Preakness Stakes horse race at Pimlico race course, Saturday, May 19, 2018, in Baltimore. Horses, riders and fans may face wet weather at the 150th annual Belmont Stakes in Elmont, New York, on Saturday, June 9. The date marks the 45th anniversary of Secretariat's record-setting victory at Belmont Park. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

As we have seen, Justify seems to handle sloppy conditions well.

If Justify wins the Belmont on a dry track, he will become the 13th Triple Crown winner.

One triple crown winner that pulled out a victory in the rain at Belmont was Omaha in 1935. However, there were good to fast racing conditions at the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes that year.

In 1948, Triple Crown winner, Citation, won in rainy and sloppy conditions at the Derby but had dry and fast racing conditions for the Preakness and Belmont that year.

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