There has been no shortage of controversy throughout the first two legs of this year’s Triple Crown. With the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes officially in the books, the focus now shifts to Elmont, New York for this year’s edition of the Belmont Stakes. Let’s take a closer look at the competitors and narrow down the best bets to win the 2019 Belmont Stakes.
Tacitus
Belmont Odds: +200
The most talked about horse in this year’s field is the favourite to win this race for obvious reasons at +200 odds. While he hasn’t received as much attention as he probably should have throughout the season, Tacitus wound up finishing third at the Kentucky Derby following Maximum Security’s disqualification.
He’s registered some impressive wins this season, winning the Tampa Bay Derby and the Wood Memorial. Both times coming from behind to win the race down the stretch.
Horses who run the Kentucky Derby but skip the Preakness (in non-Triple Crown years) do well. And with a much weaker field this time around at the Belmont Stakes, Tacitus should be a good bet to win this race outright.
Bourbon War
Belmont Odds: +800
While this horse didn’t produce as expected in the Preakness Stakes, Bourbon War has an excellent opportunity to earn some redemption by finishing the Triple Crown off in style. The son of Tapit, Bourbon War should benefit from the equipment coming back off in this race after he was forced to deal with blinkers at Pimlico. Trained by Mark Hennig, who has delivered three of the last five Belmont winners, he’s a horse that’s likely to be a factor.
Intrepid Heart
Belmont Odds: +1400
Looking a little deeper down the list of betting options, Intrepid Heart stands out for several reasons. First of all, this horse got off to an excellent start early in its career and has still never finished outside of the money. Second, the breeding is impressive as this horse is another son of Tapit, just like Bourbon War and Tacitus. Finally, Todd Pletcher’s shortcomings at the Kentucky Derby has been well documented, but he is one of the best trainers in the world and has won the Belmont Stakes three times. He’ll have this horse ready to compete on Saturday.
Sir Winston
Belmont Odds: +1600
Sir Winston is coming off a runner-up finish in the Peter Pan his last time out, edging Intrepid Heart but finishing behind Global Campaign. That race is run a week after the Kentucky Derby on the same surface that the Belmont Stakes will take place on. After falling behind early on in that race, Sir Winston rallied to show an impressive burst. The only issue with this horse is that it hasn’t looked great against top competition. The betting odds reflect that.
Spinoff
Belmont Odds: +2500
Spinoff is an interesting longshot that could possibly surprise. The second Todd Pletcher horse in the field, he’s coming off a disappointing 18th-place result at the Kentucky Derby. However, prior to that, he had two wins, a second and a third in his career. The win at Tampa Bay Downs was particularly impressive as he crushed the field by 11 3/4 lengths and the second-place result was quality too, as it came at the Louisiana Derby. We’ll see if he can get back on track after a lousy run at Churchill Downs.