2023 Belmont Stakes Odds and Predictions

On Saturday, June 10, the third and final leg of the Triple Crown will take place at the historic Belmont Park. After Bob Baffert’s National Treasure won the 2023 Preakness Stakes, there will not be a Triple Crown bid in the Belmont Stakes.

National Treasure edged out Blazing Saddles at the wire for the Preakness win. 2023 Kentucky Derby winner, Mage, finished third. Unfortunately, Mage will not race at the Belmont Stakes. However, we do get to see the return of Forte, the betting favorite for this weekend’s race.

Let’s take a look at the latest horse racing odds for this talented field, and examine some of the best prop bets available at the top Belmont Stakes betting sites.

Belmont Stakes Post Time

Post time for the 155th running of the Belmont Stakes is scheduled for 6:50 p.m. EST in Elmont, New York. Ten runners are expected to enter the gate for the Belmont Stakes.

The 2023 Belmont Stakes can be watched live on FOX. It is important to note that the Belmont Stakes will not be on NBC, which covered the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.

Coverage of the 155th Belmont Stakes will begin with the undercard on FS1 at 11:00 a.m. EST. Switch over to FOX at 4:00 p.m. for continuing coverage, and then the Belmont Stakes at roughly 6:50 p.m. EST¹.

Kentucky Derby✔️
Preakness Stakes✔️
Belmont Stakes ➡️ 6.10.23

LETS GO NEW YORK🗽🏇🏼 pic.twitter.com/uOHUBFbRug

— Belmont Stakes (@BelmontStakes) May 20, 2023

Who Won The Belmont Stakes In 2022?

Mo Donegal won as a 5/2 favorite at the 2022 Belmont Stakes. Mo Donegal’s odds shortened from 7/2 earlier in the week to surpass We the People as the betting favorite.

We had three different winners in the 2022 Triple Crown. Rich Strike shocked the world as an 80/1 longshot in the 2022 Kentucky Derby.

The fairytale ended in the 2022 Preakness Stakes, as Early Voting defeated the favorite, Epicenter, by 1 ¼ lengths². In the third jewel of the Triple Crown, we had our third different winner with Mo Donegal.

2023 Belmont Stakes Odds

The following Belmont Stakes odds are courtesy of BetUS:

There are a few online betting sites that are offering early Belmont Stakes odds. You can make your horse racing picks for the Belmont Stakes at BetUS.

Oddsmakers are not that confident in Baffert’s National Treasure right now. Could the public sentiment change by race day? As it stands, Forte is favored to win the 2023 Belmont Stakes.

Forte has +200 odds to win the Grade 1 showdown at Belmont Park. Currently, Angel of Empire is the second favorite of the Belmont Stakes at +350 odds. Angel of Empire showed 3rd in the Kentucky Derby after big money came in on him at post time.

Before we make our predictions as to which horse will win the 155^th running of the Belmont Stakes, let’s first examine some horse racing prop bets that can provide us some fantastic betting value.  

2023 Belmont Stakes Prop Bets

The Belmont Stakes props provide another option at horse betting sites. The race might take under just three minutes to complete, but there are a lot of bets won and lost in that time.

BetUS has a few Belmont Stakes prop bets that are worth checking out for this year’s event.

Winning Distance

We were able to cash a nice ticket on this prop bet in the Preakness Stakes. As expected, the Preakness went down to the wire. Are we going to see a similar ending in the Belmont Stakes?

The Belmont Stakes is the longest race in the Triple Crown. Compared to the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes, this is a marathon across 1 ½ miles. The previous two Belmont Stakes winners won by 1 ¼ lengths.

Before Mo Donegal, Essential Quality won by 1 ¼ lengths over Hot Rod Charlie in 2021³. This effort followed an easy win for Tiz the Law by 3 ¾ lengths over Dr Post a year earlier⁴.

As far as this Belmont Stakes is concerned, it will come down to how much you believe in Forte. He was expected to go off as the clear favorite to win the Kentucky Derby at post time.

After overcoming a minor injury, Forte returns and aims to prove that this could have been his run to win the Triple Crown. That said, running 1 ½ miles after this layoff from an ankle injury could be an issue.

A warm-up race before the Belmont Stakes would have been ideal. Regardless, Forte will still likely be involved in the stretch run.

Following a close call at the Preakness Stakes, expect another nail-biter at Belmont Park. The winner is unlikely to kick free in the stretch. Under 1.5 lengths appears like the right side to back.

Belmont Stakes Matchup Prop Bet: Forte vs. Angel of Empire

Currently, Forte is favored to win the Belmont Stakes at +200 odds. Expect him to close as the favorite at post time too. Angel of Empire, the second betting favorite, will likely see his odds shorten by time the horses take their post.

After Forte’s scratch, Angel of Empire went off the board as the favorite. Right up to the gate opening, money continued to pour in on Brad Cox’s Angel of Empire.

Angel of Empire was unable to pull it off at Churchill Downs, but his closing act in the stretch was promising. He was gaining on Two Phil’s and Mage with a furlong remaining in the race. Angel of Empire just ran out of track to reel in Mage for the win.

MAGE WINS THE KENTUCKY DERBY pic.twitter.com/5IEelIX2by

— Pardon My Take (@PardonMyTake) May 6, 2023

Ultimately, Angel of Empire showed third in the Kentucky Derby after a strong late rally. With 12 furlongs to work with in the Belmont Stakes, Flavien Prat should give Angle of Empire a big chance.

Forte will give the Belmont Stakes a solid go, but the 10-week break with no prep race is concerning. At a shorter distance, it wouldn’t be an issue for Forte.

However, this is a 1 ½ mile race in the Belmont Stakes. Angel of Empire should be better prepared to run this distance on Saturday.

Belmont Stakes Matchup Prop Bet: Arcangelo vs. Raise Cain

Raise Cain and Arcangelo are longshots to win the Belmont Stakes at +1500 odds. We do not foresee a win for Arcangelo or Raise Cain, but they should battle hard.

Raise Cain is coming off a disappointing effort in the Kentucky Derby. The Ben Colebrook trainee is having an inconsistent career going into New York. In his previous four assignments, Raise Cain has finished 8th, 5th, 1st, and 5th⁵.

Following a dominating 7 ½ length win as a longshot in the $300,000 Gotham Stakes (Gr. 3), Raise Cain followed up in 5th at Keeneland. On April 8, Raise Cain finished 5th in the $1,000,000 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (Gr. 1).

His speed figure dropped from 93 to 90 in the Kentucky Derby. Raise Cain finished 8th in a mediocre, but acceptable performance for his expectations⁶. In two workouts following the Derby, he was clocked at 1:50.00 in five furlongs and 50.20 seconds in four furlongs.

ARCANGELO logs a final breeze in preparation for the G1 Belmont Stakes presented by @NYRABets with hall of fame jockey Javier Castellano aboard! pic.twitter.com/JkxzOs9a32

— Belmont Stakes (@BelmontStakes) June 1, 2023

Overall, Arcangelo is 2-for-4 in his young career. He is coming off a win by a head in the $200,000 Peter Pan Stakes (Gr. 3) in his graded debut at Belmont Park on May 13. It was the second straight speed figure of 97 for Arcangelo⁷.

In Arcangelo’s latest workouts, he completed four furlongs in 59.78 seconds and 1:02.81 in five furlongs on May 31. In a battle of the long shots, the $35,000 colt should put in a solid bid for Jena Antonucci.

2023 Belmont Stakes Predictions

Check out our breakdown of the betting favorites, best value and best longshot picks for the 155^th Belmont Stakes:

Belmont Stakes Betting Favorite: Forte (+200)

After a lengthy layoff due to an ankle injury, Forte will make his Triple Crown debut at Belmont Park.

In addition to the injury, on May 10, Todd Pletcher received a 10-day suspension after Forte had a positive drug test in 2022. Pletcher received a stay of the suspension upon appeal⁸.

Forte was on the 14-day vet’s list after being scratched hours before the Kentucky Derby. He was the biggest hope for a Triple Crown winner in 2023.

Forte’s latest performance was on April 1, in the $1,000,000 Florida Derby (Gr. 1). He handled the assignment well, as Forte inched free for a one length win over Mage⁹.

The win was Forte’s fifth in a row and sixth in seven career starts¹⁰. His resume includes a 1 ½ length victory over Cave Rock in the $2,000,000 FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (Gr. 1) at Keeneland in November¹¹.

If Forte is on form this weekend, Pletcher has to be confident. However, it’s a big question mark that might prevent people from paying a short price, though.

Belmont Stakes Best Value Bet: Tapit Trice (+400)

Forte isn’t Pletcher’s only colt that can win the 155th Belmont Stakes. Tapit Trice is another horse in Pletcher’s barn that will have a strong chance in the marathon at Belmont Park.

The $1,300,000 colt was bred to win Triple Crown events. Despite finishing 7th in the Kentucky Derby, Tapit Trice was on a four-race winning streak going into Churchill Downs.

On April 8, he won the $1,000,000 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (Gr. 1) in his Grade 1 debut. Overall, Tapit Trice is 4-for-6, including winning four of his previous five attempts¹².

A heck of a late push by Tapit Trice to secure the win at the Blue Grass Stakes!

📺 @nbc and @peacock pic.twitter.com/69GohyV3ga

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) April 8, 2023

By all accounts, Tapit Trice is heading in the right direction ahead of the Belmont Stakes. Tapit Trice completed five furlongs in 1:00.22, and most recently four furlongs in 49.89 seconds on June 3.

While Tapit Trice might have finished 7th in the Derby, he was coming on strong in the later stages. Tapit Trice is a contender who should appreciate the longer distance in the Belmont Stakes.

Forte’s stablemate may not get as much attention leading up to post time. However, Tapit Trice has all of the necessary attributes to have the last say at Belmont Park.

Belmont Stakes Best Longshot Bet: Hit Show (+1400)

Manny Franco and Hit Show are heading to Belmont Park seeking to build on some momentum from the Kentucky Derby. Hit Show was unable to show, but had a promising performance.

Overall, Hit Show has finished 5th, 2nd, 1st, 1st, 4th, 1st in six starts¹³. The signature win of his career was in the $250,000 Withers Stakes (Gr. 3) at Aqueduct Racetrack on February 11. Hit Show kicked free for a 5 ½ length win over Arctic Arrogance¹⁴.

With that effort, Brad Cox pointed Hit Show to the $750,000 Wood Memorial (Gr. 2) on April 8. In a duel against Lord Miles, Hit Show lost by a nose at the wire. Hit Show broke well in the stretch to move from 4th to 2nd¹⁵.

Despite the loss, Hit Show earned a trip to Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby. Hit Show ran well against a tough field to finish 5th. You cannot fault the effort from Hit Show in that one.

Hit Show might have to catch a break to win this weekend. With that said, a lot can happen in a 12-furlong event. Hit Show is a top pick among horses with long Belmont Stakes odds.

Preakness Stakes Winner: Tapit Trice Overshadows Forte’s Return

Pletcher will be asked plenty of questions regarding Forte this week. However, another horse in Pletcher’s stable might steal the spotlight on race day. As a short favorite, is Forte the best bet in 155th Belmont Stakes?

Forte is a tremendous colt who is the favorite for a good reason. He was the most well-liked horse entering the Kentucky Derby before getting scratched. Going into Belmont Park on a six-race winning streak, Forte will continue to attract money at the window.

However, the layoff could be problematic at this distance. Tapit Trice may ultimately end up being the more reliable runner for Pletcher. He was 7th in the Kentucky Derby, but finished well in the stretch.

The loss snapped a four-race winning streak after he won the Toyota Blue Grass a month earlier. Tapit Trice is a top pick in what should be a close finish at the wire.