Although the final entries and post position draw for the Belmont Stakes won't take place until Wednesday, it's expected a total of nine colts will go to the starting gate. Of those, only Justify and Bravazo exit the Preakness Stakes, and will be the only two horses to have run in all three legs of the Triple Crown. Four others will be rejoining the Triple Crown fray after running in the Kentucky Derby but skipping the Preakness.
Here's a look at the probable field, with odds courtesy of Bovada's racebook.
Justify (4-5): Unbeaten in three races going into the Derby, the questions for Justify were whether he could overcome his lack of experience having not raced as a two-year-old, and how he would hold up to the pressure of facing a very good field for the first time. He answered his critics with style, breaking quickly from the gate to stalk the early pace and then taking over at the half-way point, winning by a comfortable 2 1/2 lengths.
He had to work a lot harder in the Preakness, as Derby runner-up Good Magic pushed him every step of the way, but he still had enough left to hold off the late-closing Bravazo for the win. While some people saw a tiring horse, jockey Mike Smith said after the race that Justify could have gone around the track again if needed. He's clearly the best horse in the race, but after a very tough spring schedule, he'll need every bit of that stamina at Belmont.
Hofburg (4-1): He made his racing debut last September at Saratoga, but then was given six months off before coming back and getting his first win in March at Gulfstream Park. He followed that up by running second in the (G1) Florida Derby, 3 lengths back of Audible, who ran third in the Derby. He ran okay to finish in seventh place in Kentucky, although he passed a lot of tired horses in the stretch.
Bravazo (7-1): He came like a freight train to get up for second in the Preakness after running sixth in the Derby. He has a Grade 2 win in the Risen Star Stakes back in February, but he followed that up by running eighth in the Louisiana Derby before his off-the-board effort at Churchill Downs and seems very inconsistent.
Vino Rosso (8-1): He's a mid-pack runner who got the perfect pace set-up to win the (G1) Wood Memorial before running ninth in the Derby. While he had to break from the tough #19 post, that result was still something of a disappointment for a colt who looked to be improving coming into the race. He's a threat if he runs his best.
Tenfold (10-1): Lightly raced colt was making only his fourth career start when he got up to finish third in the Preakness at odds of 26-1. Prior to that he had run fifth in the (G1) Arkansas Derby. His sire, Tapit, has produced three of the past four Belmont Stakes winners.
Blended Citizen (14-1): He needed five races to get his first lifetime win and since then his wins have come against lesser competition at the Grade 3 level. However, last out he won the (G3) Peter Pan Stakes on the Belmont Park dirt, the same path to the Belmont as 2014 winner Tonalist.
Gronkowski (25-1): Named for (and now partially owned by) NFL star Rob Gronkowski, he was the UK qualifier for the Kentucky Derby but had to be scratched with a minor injury. While he has some talent, he's never raced on a dirt track, around two turns, or beyond one mile.
Noble Indy (33-1): Like Vino Rosso, he had to break from a far outside post in the Kentucky Derby, but even with that his race there was a big disappointment, as he had a good position early but tired badly to finish 16th. Prior to the Derby he had won the (G2) Louisiana Derby, and it could be that he just didn't like the sloppy track at Churchill, but the 1 1/2 miles looks formidable.
Free Drop Billy (50-1): Finished one spot ahead of Noble Indy in the Kentucky Derby. Gained a lot of supporters when he won the (G1) Breeders' Futurity last fall, and he's had some top three results in big races since then, but has yet to score another win.
The Belmont is set to go on Saturday, June 9th with an expected post time of 6:37 PM Eastern. You can get great odds and make a future bet today with an account at one of these top-rated sportsbooks.
Category : Betting Picks
Tag : Bovada , Horse Racing
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