The third and final leg of the Triple Crown is set for its usual early June timing but will be held in a very unusual place.
The Belmont Stakes is playing a road game for the first time this year while Belmont Park undergoes significant renovations.
The 2024 and 2025 races will be held at New York’s second-most famous track, the Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, NY, which sits slightly more than three hours north of Belmont Park.
Let’s break down what that means for the horses and make some 2024 Belmont Stakes predictions.
Belmont Stakes Horses, Position Draws, & Odds
Horse racing odds for these Belmont Stakes picks are current as of Tuesday, June 4, and courtesy of FanDuel Racing.
- Seize The Grey, 8-1
- Resilience, 10-1
- Mystik Dan, 5-1
- The Wine Steward, 15-1
- Antiquarian, 12-1
- Dornoch, 15-1
- Protective, 20-1
- Honor Marie, 12-1
- Sierra Leone, 9-5
- Mindframe, 7-2
Scratched from Belmont Stakes
As of Tuesday, June 4, no horses have been scratched from Saturday’s Triple Crown race at Saratoga Race Course.
When is the 2024 Belmont Stakes?
While the Belmont Stakes will be at a new venue this year, its place on the calendar remains unchanged.
The 2024 Belmont Stakes will be held on Saturday, June 8, with a post time of 6:41 p.m. ET.
Belmont Stakes Prediction to Win/Place/Show
No. 9 Sierra Leone (9-5)
I picked Sierra Leone to win the Kentucky Derby, and he lost by a literal inch. If that race was five feet longer, he would have caught Mystik Dan and been draped in roses.
Unluckily for Sierra Leone, the Belmont Stakes is usually the longest of the three Triple Crown races and, in many ways, the toughest. But with it being moved to Saratoga this year, it will only be 10 furlongs, the same distance as the Derby.
Mystik Dan couldn’t last in the Preakness and struggled on the wet track. Sierra Leone has had that additional time off to rest and train.
And with a famed trainer like Chad Brown and talented jockey in Tyler Gaffalione, they will know exactly when to make their break this time around.
Back Sierra Leone to pull away from the pack at the Belmont Stakes as your best horse racing bet today.
No. 10 Mindframe (7-2)
Mindframe’s debut is highly anticipated after he skipped the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness.
There’s a reason he is the second favorite behind Leone and ahead of Derby winner Mystik Dan. He is well-rested and a very talented horse, coming off of wins in both of his starts, each by more than seven lengths.
Mindframe will be starting on the outside, just to the right of favorite Sierra Leone. Expect him to push the Belmont favorite the whole way.
No. 1 Seize The Grey (8-1)
While it might surprise people that I don’t have Mystik Dan in my top three, this will be his third race in five weeks. He didn’t have the gas in the Preakness, and I don’t expect his energy to improve here.
- Check out our favorite sites for Belmont Stakes betting.
Furthermore, Seize The Grey seemed to flourish on the wet track, going wire-to-wire against Mystik Dan and grabbing a convincing win at Pimlico.
The 2024 Belmont Stakes has rain in the forecast as of now, so I expect Seize The Grey to make a push and hold off Mystik Dan. But ultimately, the two horses ahead of him will win out on talent and freshness.
Belmont Stakes Longshot Pick
No. 5 Antiquarian (12-1)
You won’t find a more exciting jockey-trainer combination in the field than Antiquarian’s.
He is trained by Todd Pletcher and jockeyed by John Velazquez, who both have six Triple Crown wins in their illustrious careers.
Antiquarian could outperform his odds in his Triple Crown debut, as he is coming into the Belmont as the winner of two of his last three starts and recently posted the best speed figure of his career.
He has only failed to finish in the top three once in his four career starts. Additionally, Pletcher and Velazquez have previously teamed up for a pair of Triple Crown wins (Always Dreaming — 2017 Kentucky Derby & Rags to Riches — 2007 Belmont Stakes).
If you’re looking for a horse with some longer odds and a real chance to win this thing, it’s tough to ignore the setup that Antiquarian has going into Saturday.
Past Belmont Stakes Winners
2023: Arcangelo
2022: Mo Donegal
2021: Essential Quality
2020: Tiz the Law
2019: Sir Winston
2018: Justify
2017: Tapwrit
2016: Creator
2015: American Pharoah
2014: Tonalist
