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USA Today
3 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
2025 Belmont Stakes: Odds, predictions for the full field ahead of Saturday's race
2025 Belmont Stakes: Odds, predictions for the full field ahead of Saturday's race Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty returns to the track this Saturday for the final leg of the 2025 Triple Crown. Sovereignty did not compete in the Preakness, allowing Derby runner-up Journalism to win the middle leg. Now, the pair will meet up for the final time to determine which horse is the best of the year. Both horses performed miraculous comebacks to win their respective races. Sovereignty rallied from 16th place at the start of the Derby in order to win. Journalism, meanwhile, had an incredible final stretch for the Preakness, just narrowly beating out the field in the final seconds. However, Journalism's win was overshadowed by the looming question: "Would Journalism have still won if Sovereignty was racing?" That question will be answered this Saturday. Here's everything to know about the 2025 Belmont Stakes. Belmont Stakes 2025 draw: Post positions, odds for final leg of Triple Crown race Predictions for 2025 Belmont Stakes Asbury Park Press: Four out of six go Journalism to win Here are the experts' picks in order of finish: Ken Jordan: Sovereignty, Rodriguez, Journalism, Baeza Sean Nolan: Journalism, Baeza, Rodriguez, Sovereignty Steven Falk: Journalism, Baeza, Sovereignty, Rodriguez Steve Edelson: Journalism, Sovereignty, Rodriguez, Heart of Honor Greg Giombarrese: Journalism, Baeza, Sovereignty, Rodriguez Bob Jordan: Baeza, Hill Road, Journalism, Sovereignty Sean Treppedi, Sports Illustrated: Sovereignty Treppedi writes, "Trainer Bill Mott, who guided Drosselmeyer to a Belmont win 15 years ago, has methodically developed him for peak performances and says Sovereignty has only improved for this race. With the right stamina and experience, Mott has a good shot at collecting two legs of the Triple Crown in 2025." 2025 Belmont Stakes odds *Horses listed in order of post position. Odds via Belmont Stakes Hill Road: 10-1 Sovereignty: 2-1 Rodriguez: 6-1 Uncaged: 30-1 Crudo: 15-1 Baeza: 4-1 Journalism: 8-5 Heart of Honor: 30-1 How to watch 2025 Belmont Stakes Date: Saturday, June 7, 2025 Saturday, June 7, 2025 Location: Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York Time: 6:50 p.m. ET 6:50 p.m. ET TV : Fox : Fox Stream: Fubo Stream the Belmont Stakes with a free trial on a Fubo subscription
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Belmont Stakes has plenty of storylines without a Triple Crown in play
Normally, the running of the Belmont Stakes without a chance at a Triple Crown winner makes the third leg of the series about as interesting as a television procedural — the Chicagos, FBIs or Law & Orders — in the last two minutes after the culprit has been identified and prosecuted. But not this year. The 157th running of the Belmont Stakes has about as many plot lines as a season of "The White Lotus." It's easily the best race of the year, and, yes, that includes the Kentucky Derby. Advertisement You've got your sentimental favorite in Journalism, whose stretch drive in winning the Preakness Stakes could make almost anyone a fan of horse racing. You've got your villain in Sovereignty, who kicked racing tradition in the teeth after winning the Kentucky Derby when his connections refused to enter him in the Preakness Stakes because of the short time frame — two weeks — between the first two legs of the Triple Crown. It killed any opportunity racing had to build a new fan base revolving around the Derby and a possible Triple Crown winner. You've got your fresh-faced wannabe in Rodriguez, whose last race was a win in the Wood Memorial. He was scheduled to run in both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, but a sore hoof forced him to withdraw from both races. His early speed and front-running ability likely means he'll be on the lead as the horses head down the backstretch. Add to that the fact that he is trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Mike Smith, both Hall of Famers who know how to get a horse from gate to wire in winning form. And finally, you've got a wiseguy (professional gamblers) horse in Baeza, whose talent far exceeds his early results. He finished a strong third in the Kentucky Derby and second in the Santa Anita Derby behind Journalism. He is also trying to find a place in history for his mom, Puca, who has produced Kentucky Derby winner Mage and last year's Belmont winner in Dornoch. If Baeza were to win, he would be the first horse who has a dam who has won three Classic races. That's a record. Advertisement Read more: No chance for a Triple Crown again stirs debate of when to run the races And that's just half of the eight-horse field. Whoever finishes first, the victory is likely to be remembered as having an asterisk next to it. The Belmont Stakes, considered the test of champions because of its normal 1 1/2-mile distance, is being run at the less interesting distance of 1 1/4 miles. The reason is the race has been moved from Long Island's Belmont Park to Saratoga Race Track in Saratoga Springs, a suburb of the New York state capital of Albany, because of a massive rebuild at Belmont Park. The reason the race was shortened is because to have a 1 1/2-mile race at Saratoga, the horses would have to start on a turn, something the organizers didn't want to happen. Advertisement The starting positions add little clarity as to who might win. Sovereignty (post 2, 2-1 on morning line) should have no problem getting early running room, especially with Rodriguez on his immediate outside. Rodriguez (post 3, 6-1) and Crudo (post 5, 15-1) are expected to battle for the lead early. Crudo's last win was his last outing with a 7 1/4-length win in the Sir Barton Stakes at Pimlico. Journalism will be breaking from post 7 at 8-5 morning line odds. "He's been kind of the same horse since July of last summer,' Michael McCarthy, trainer of Journalism, told NYRA publicity. 'He does everything you ask a good horse to do — eats well, trains well, packs well. I thought the last six or seven weeks here, his energy has been the same throughout. Obviously, Saratoga is very good for horses. He seems reenergized up here. I'm looking forward to a wonderful renewal of the Belmont Stakes on Saturday." If either Journalism or Sovereignty wins, they will be the first repeat winner of a Classic race since Justify in 2018, who won all three Triple Crown races. Since then, no horse has won more than one Classic race, making it a 21-race streak. Of course, Triple Crown races are only for 3-year-olds meaning trainers start every year fresh trying to find prospective winners. Advertisement Racing is in desperate need of stars and the chase for the Triple Crown is one way of getting them. It's why there was such consternation when trainer Bill Mott and owner Godolphin, decided to skip the Preakness Stakes. 'You never know until they actually do it in a race,' said Michael Banahan, who heads Godolphin in the U.S. 'He always gave us that indication that he'd like to go long. And we thought the Derby as well and then finished up, from the top of the stretch to the wire in very good fashion and galloped all the way through the wire. Crudo is a 15-1 longshot to win the Belmont Stakes, which features an eight-horse field. (Seth Wenig / Associated Press) 'So, I'm with the Belmont this year at Saratoga. He just has to do the same distance again. So, I would anticipate that'll be fine for him. I suppose if it were a regular Belmont at Belmont Park, that'll be another question to answer going that far. It certainly looks like a mile-and-a-quarter was well [within] his wheelhouse in the Derby and anticipate that it shouldn't be any issue at Saratoga as well.' Advertisement The horse that is poised to pull the upset is Baeza, who has only won one race, a maiden at Santa Anita. His second-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby would have normally been enough to get him in the Kentucky Derby. But Churchill Downs, in an obvious attack at West Coast races, lowered the point total because of a small field. Trainer John Shirreffs did not want to bring the horse to Churchill Downs, hoping there were enough scratches to get him in the race. Shirreffs was overruled by the owners so he stood on the backside at Barn 41 while hoping for an entry to the world's most famous race. The reprieve, and entry, came when Rodriguez was scratched because of a sore hoof. Baeza more than proved his entry into the Derby with a strong third-place finish. 'I think Baeza, week by week, he's developed a little bit more,' said Shirreffs. 'He's developed a little bit more. I see him, maybe, a little bit taller, a little 'stretchier' He seems to be holding his weight really well. And you can really get an image of him now is what he'll look like as a 4-year-old. So, you're starting to see him emerge.' Advertisement The most likely scenario is the winner of the Belmont Stakes will come from the four most prominent horses. It's more than possible that the 21-race streak without a repeat winner will be over. But they run the races to answer that question. Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
CBS News
4 hours ago
- Sport
- CBS News
Meet the Belmont Stakes horses running in the 2025 race
The Belmont Stakes is set to host a rematch in New York on Saturday of the top three finishing horses from the Kentucky Derby to close out horse racing's Triple Crown for 2025. Five weeks after Sovereignty won the Derby over Journalism and Baeza, the three horses will be among the eight competing in the last race of the Triple Crown — the series for 3-year-olds consisting of the Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont. Sovereignty's connections chose to skip the Preakness in Baltimore to prepare for the Belmont, meaning no horse would win the Triple Crown this year. 2025 Belmont Stakes horses and odds Journalism, who won the Preakness two weeks after coming in second at the Derby, was picked as the morning-line favorite for the Belmont with 8-5 odds. The odds will change as bettors place their wagers leading up to Saturday's approximate post time of 7:04 p.m. EDT. Here's a list of all the horses racing in the Belmont in order by their number with their morning-line odds: 1. Hill Road, 10-1 2. Sovereignty, 2-1 3. Rodriguez, 6-1 4. Uncaged, 30-1 5. Crudo, 15-1 6. Baeza, 4-1 7. Journalism, 8-5 8. Heart of Honor, 30-1 The Belmont will be 1 1/4 miles long instead of the usual 1 1/2 miles, making the race known as the Test of the Champion the same length as the Derby. The change is because the Belmont is temporarily being held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, about a 45-minute drive north of the state capital of Albany. "Shame the Belmont is not a mile-and-a-half," said Heart of Honor's trainer, Jamie Osborne, according to a news release after the Preakness. The brown colt didn't have the best start, but passed four horses to finish fifth in the 1 3/16-mile race, the shortest of the Triple Crown races. The Belmont is expected to return to Long Island's Belmont Park next year after the completion of a massive redevelopment project. While the Triple Crown has been won twice in the past decade — with American Pharoah ending a 37-year drought in 2015 and Justify in 2018 — winning just the Preakness and the Belmont has become more of a novelty. It was last accomplished in 2005 by Afleet Alex, who finished third in the Derby. At the Preakness, Journalism barreled down the stretch to overcome Gosger and win by half a length at Pimlico Race Course. The bay colt was the morning-line favorite for the Preakness as well as the Derby, winning over oddsmakers with four straight victories in California, including April's Santa Anita Derby, March's San Felipe Stakes and December's Los Alamitos Futurity Stakes. Jockey Umberto Rispoli, who was aboard Journalism for those three races, the Preakness and the Derby, will have the mount again for the Belmont. Journalism's trainer, Michael McCarthy, has only had one other horse in the Belmont, Rombauer, who came in third in 2021. Journalism trains on the track for the 157th running of the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course on June 5, 2025, in Saratoga Springs, New 2-1 odds in the morning line, Sovereignty will try to achieve a rarer feat than winning just the Preakness and the Belmont: victories at the Derby and the Belmont. The last horse to do that was Thunder Gulch in 1995 after finishing third at the Preakness. While Sovereignty skipped the Triple Crown's middle jewel, the bay colt wasn't completely out of the news. His jockey, Junior Alvarado, was fined $62,000 and suspended for two racing days in Kentucky by the state's Board of Stewards for allegedly using his riding crop too much in the Derby. Alvarado is appealing the decision. Alvarado will be riding Sovereignty on Saturday, which will be the jockey's fourth mount in the Belmont. Last year, he was aboard Resilience, who finished in 10th place and was trained by Bill Mott. The two have teamed up again with Sovereignty. Mott has trained a Belmont winner before — Drosselmeyer, who won in 2010. Sovereignty comes into the Belmont after finishing second at March's Florida Derby and winning the Fountain of Youth Stakes in Florida and October's Street Sense Stakes at Churchill Downs, the home of the Derby. Sovereignty breezes during morning workouts on the Oklahoma Training Track at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, June 4, 2025. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images Baeza didn't initially draw a post for the Derby and only entered the field when Rodriguez was scratched from the race two days before the Run for the Roses. He broke from the post on the far outside and came in third behind Journalism by a neck. Before the Derby, the bay colt came in second at the Santa Anita Derby, also behind Journalism. Baeza was given 4-1 morning-line odds for the Belmont and will be under Flavien Prat, who also had the mount in the Derby. Prat's been in the past four runnings of the Belmont, riding Hot Rod Charlie to second place in 2021. Trainer John Shirreffs has had three other horses in the Belmont, most recently Gormley, who came in fourth in 2017. Baeza breezes during his morning workout at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, June 4, 2025. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images Rodriguez was scratched from the Derby over what co-owner Tom Ryan described as a "small but slightly sensitive foot bruise." Trainer Bob Baffert said the dark bay colt has healed and is performing as well as he was before he won the Wood Memorial Stakes in April at New York City's Aqueduct Racetrack, according to a New York Racing Association news release. Baffert has trained three Belmont winners: American Pharoah, Justify and Point Given, who won the race by 12 1/2 lengths in 2001. With 6-1 odds in the morning line, Rodriguez will be under Mike Smith, who's looking for his fourth Belmont win. Hill Road, who was given 10-1 morning-line odds for the Belmont, won the Peter Pan Stakes at Aqueduct last month and finished third in the Tampa Bay Derby in March and in November's Breeders' Cup Juvenile in California. Irad Ortiz Jr. will be aboard the bay colt in pursuit of his third Belmont win, most recently riding Mo Donegal to victory in 2022. Hill Road will be trainer Chad Brown's fifth career entry in the race. He's still seeking his first Belmont win after coming close with third-place Sierra Leone in 2024 and second-place Gronkowski in 2018. Crudo, who's co-owned by celebrity chef Bobby Flay, was given 15-1 odds in the morning line. The bay colt won the Sir Barton Stakes, one of the undercard races for the Preakness, and will be trainer Todd Pletcher's chance for a fifth Belmont win. John Velazquez will have the mount, going for his third victory at the race. Pletcher's second horse in the race, Uncaged, won at Saratoga in August and at Aqueduct in April but came in sixth at the Peter Pan. With 30-1 morning-line odds, the bay colt will be under Luis Saez, who won the Belmont with Dornoch last year and with Essential Quality in 2021. With Heart of Honor, the other horse to be given 30-1 odds in the morning line, Saffie Osborne has a chance to become the first woman to ride to victory in a Triple Crown race since Julie Krone won the Belmont in 1993 aboard Colonial Affair. In addition to finishing fifth at the Preakness, the British-bred brown colt raced in the United Arab Emirates, coming in second at the UAE Derby in April.
New York Post
14 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Post
2025 Belmont Stakes prediction: How to use Chaos Theory to your betting advantage
Gambling content 21+. The New York Post may receive an affiliate commission if you sign up through our links. Read our editorial standards for more information. One of my favorite betting strategies when it comes to the biggest events on the sporting calendar is the Chaos Theory. Fans of 'Jurassic Park' will recognize the concept, which is that even the tiniest change, decision or break could have an enormous impact on how the future plays out. The reason that this concept is worth applying to handicapping horse races is that the payoff can be huge. By now, the entire world seems to be in lockstep that the 2025 Belmont Stakes is a showdown between the two favorites, No. 7 Journalism (8-5) and No. 2 Sovereignty (2-1). When you convert the morning line odds to implied probability, you get close to a 75 percent chance that one of these two heavyweights will win this race — and the odds are only going to go in one direction (hint: They ain't getting longer). This kind of titanic showdown makes for a terrific watch for those who just want to sit back and enjoy the spectacle of a Triple Crown race, but it doesn't make for the best betting, especially if you're somebody who loves to go hunting for a big score. You just aren't likely to make much money backing either, or both, of the favorites. That's where the Chaos Theory comes in. Before we go any further, please remember that this betting strategy is a long shot to pay off. The point here is to build a ticket with extreme upside, based on one thing early in the race not going to plan, causing a ripple effect that completely turns this race on its head. It's unlikely to happen, but if it does, you could be in line for a massive score. That brings us to No. 3 Rodriguez. Everybody and their uncles believe Rodriguez will be aggressive out of the gates and duel with either No. 5 Crudo or No. 6 Baeza to get to the front of the pack in an attempt to go gate-to-wire. But what if Rodriguez, who is two months removed from his last race after scratching at the Kentucky Derby, isn't sharp out of the gate or just gets beaten to his spot? Journalism trains on June 5, 2025 before the running of Saturday's Belmont Stakes horse race in Saratoga Springs. AP Or better yet, what if jockey Mike Smith opts out of that strategy, given how this race sets up? Journalism is a stalker who wants to sit right behind a target before making his move, and Sovereignty is an all-world closer who wants a hot pace to run into down the stretch. Perhaps that causes Smith to play things closer to the vest rather than go for broke. If Rodriguez doesn't get to the front, that could slow things down a tad, allowing Crudo or Baeza to take charge of setting the tempo. Baeza, like Journalism, is a presser who wants to be right behind the leaders, so a curveball from Rodriguez would throw him into an unfamiliar situation, trying to win from out front. That would likely cause Flavien Prat to put the handbrake on Baeza to keep him in his preferred position. This slower, more chaotic scenario would level the playing field against Sovereignty. Get the lowdown on the Best USA Sports Betting Sites and Apps He's likely the only closer in this field who can run down a scorching pace, but plenty of other runners will be brought into contention if things don't pick up. It also would give the front-runner in this scenario, Crudo, a legitimate chance to wire this field. He just went gate-to-wire at the Sir Barton Stakes on Preakness Day, after all. And if it is Crudo out front, running at a manageable pace, perhaps that causes things to jam up on Journalism, and he isn't able to escape trouble like he did at Pimlico. That could leave the door open for the lesser of the closers in this field, No. 1 Hill Country, to make a potentially race-winning move late. The Chaos Theory Ticket: 1-5 exacta box. Why Trust New York Post Betting Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
New York Times
4 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Preakness winner Journalism is the early favorite to win Belmont Stakes
Journalism, who won the Preakness Stakes and finished second in the Kentucky Derby, was listed as the early favorite to win the Belmont Stakes after the post position draw was held Monday evening. Journalism, who tops the field with 8-5 odds to win the race, drew the No. 7 slot in the eight-horse field. Kentucky Derby-winner Sovereignty is just behind Journalism with 2-1 odds and will start from the No. 2 position. The post positions are set for the Grade 1, $2 million Belmont Stakes presented by @NYRABets on Saturday! — Belmont Stakes (@BelmontStakes) June 2, 2025 Baeza, who will start just inside Journalism at the No. 6 position, was next with 4-1 odds. Baeza finished third in the Kentucky Derby, but skipped the Preakness, as did Sovereignty. The Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the Triple Crown, takes place Saturday. Post time is 7:04 p.m. ET. Here are the post positions and odds for the race:
