2024 Belmont Stakes Contenders

by TVG Staff
Last Updated: April 17, 2024

The Triple Crown trail has run since the first points races back in September, reaches fever pitch with the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, and draws to its exciting conclusion on Saturday, June 8, with the Belmont Stakes! The flagship race at Belmont Park, the race covers 1 ½ miles over “Big Sandy”: the track’s deep, demanding dirt course. The spoils are rich: $2 million, up from $1.5 million, the iconic blanket of carnations, and a place in horse racing history.

The race is a handicapping puzzle like no other. Picking a winner requires knowing the horses’ form, running styles, and distance pedigrees. It also requires assessing the jockeys’ ability to ride at Belmont Park, since the sweeping, mile-and-a-half oval requires unique tactical decision-making. Such a competitive race, however, can lead to excellent prices at the betting windows. So, this is the perfect time to get to know the Belmont Stakes contenders and get ready to place your bets!

Belmont Stakes Horse Odds and Entries

We’re still a couple of months away from the 2024 Belmont Stakes, so the field won’t be drawn for a little while, and not till after the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes have both been won. Only then will we have an idea about which horses will be contending in this race, and whether any of them have the chance of becoming a Triple Crown winner.

Belmont Stakes Contenders and Horse Profiles

Though the race has yet to be drawn, we can look back at our coverage of the 2023 Belmont Stakes to help get into the mindset of the type of horse we can expect to win the race, since Arcangelo won it last year.

Angel of Empire (Classic Empire x Armony’s Angel - To Honor and Serve) - Post 8, 7-2 ML

Trainer: Brad Cox

He went off the favorite in the Kentucky Derby after winning both the Risen Star (G2) and the Arkansas Derby (G1). The Risen Star looked like a race that fell apart for his closing style, though the Arkansas Derby was a fairer pace and thus a more impressive win. He was a hard charging third down the Churchill Downs stretch in the Kentucky Derby, though the fact that he could not quite get there over Mage at 1 ¼ miles makes him a little questionable for the step up in trip.

Pros: He consistently runs well, and especially in his Arkansas Derby win, he looked like a horse who is growing into himself.

Cons: Without a fiery pace, closers don’t typically win the Belmont Stakes, and he may find 1 ½ miles just past his stamina.

Arcangelo (Arrogate x Modeling - Tapit) - Post 3, 8-1 ML

Trainer: Jena Antonucci

It took him three starts to graduate, but he went straight from a maiden win to a stakes breakthrough in the Peter Pan (G3), the local prep for the Belmont. That was only a mile and an eighth, but he showed grit to deny Bishops Bay and he handled the sandy Belmont surface well. He can track in range of the pace. His pedigree is also as good as any you’ll see in the stud book for this kind of trip: he is by the long-winded Arrogate out of a mare by Belmont Stakes super-stud Tapit, and his dam is from the family of Better Than Honour, who produced Belmont winners Rags to Riches and Jazil.

Pros: He handled the Belmont surface well in the Peter Pan, and his pedigree is as good an American pedigree for the Belmont distance as you’ll find.

Cons: With only one stakes race, and that being a Grade 3 at 1 ⅛ miles, he cedes experience to runners who come in off of the Derby trail or starts in other Triple Crown races.

Forte (Violence x Queen Caroline - Blame) - Post 6, 5-2 ML

Trainer: Todd Pletcher

The juvenile champion and Florida Derby (G1) winner carries a five-race winning streak to the Belmont. He was the morning line favorite for the Kentucky Derby but scratched due to a bruised right front foot that was still healing. He has worked twice since and looks to be fit and ready for the Belmont for a trainer, Todd Pletcher, who knows how to win the Belmont. The clear class leader since his two-year-old season, he looked to be maintaining that as the distances got longer, and his Florida Derby win over eventual Kentucky Derby winner Mage proved he can win when things are difficult. He is a late-running type, which raises some concerns, though he can sit a bit closer to the pace than the deepest closers in the field.

Pros: He is a consistent, top-class horse who can overcome adversity, and his trainer is strong in the Belmont.

Cons: He missed a start in the Kentucky Derby, and has yet to try a distance longer than 1 ⅛ miles.

Hit Show (Candy Ride x Actress - Tapit)- Post 7, 10-1 ML

Trainer: Brad Cox

There were class questions heading into the Kentucky Derby, but he ran a solid race. He sat closer to a lively pace than the likes of Mage, Angel of Empire, or Disarm, and he still managed to stay on for fifth despite moving a bit early and flattening late. A better-timed move as well as a softer pace than he saw in the Kentucky Derby could help him improve in this spot, and he will almost certainly be a price with so many other marquee horses pointing toward the Belmont.

Pros: His form is consistent, and he does not have to sit as far from the pace as other contenders in this race. The price will also be appealing.

Cons: He will have to turn the tables on Angel of Empire, and even though he is out of a Tapit mare, the Belmont distance tends to test the Candy Ride progeny.

Il Miracolo (Gun Runner x Tapit’s World - Tapit) - Post 5, 30-1 ML

Trainer: Antonio Sano

The Kentucky Derby trail was too much for him: in five stakes races at Aqueduct and Gulfstream Park (including four for points) he finished no better than fifth. He got back on track in an allowance optional claiming dirt mile May 11 at Gulfstream Park, the same course and distance as his maiden win, but the competition in South Florida gets a lot softer once the championship meet ends and horses move north to places like Keeneland, Churchill Downs, and Belmont.

Pros: On paper, a horse by Gun Runner out of a Tapit mare should have some upside at classic distances, and perhaps even the Belmont distance.

Cons: He has had many tries in stakes company and could not contend. Both of his wins have only come at one turn over much easier company.

National Treasure (Quality Road x Treasure - Medaglia d’Oro) - Post 4, 5-1 ML

Trainer: Bob Baffert

A common underneath presence on the Kentucky Derby trail, he bypassed the run for the roses and went back to the Bob Baffert barn after a fourth-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby for Tim Yakteen. Baffert pointed him to the Preakness, and he used his speed to take the early lead in the Preakness Stakes. National Treasure didn’t let up, holding off a well-meant Blazing Sevens to take the win and break his streak of underneath finishes against good horses.

Pros: His tactical speed should give him a chance to carve out a good trip in a field with so many closers. Previously a bridesmaid so many times, he remembered how to win in the Preakness.

Cons: His pedigree is not as good as some for the Belmont distance, and the fact that he won the Preakness Stakes means that the price will be short.

Red Route One (Gun Runner x Red House - Tapit) - Post 9, 15-1 ML

Trainer: Steve Asmussen

Previously a bridesmaid on the Kentucky Derby trail, he was rerouted to the Bath House Row Stakes after a disappointing sixth in the Arkansas Derby. He got his stakes breakthrough in that spot, earned a berth in the Preakness, but could only muster a non-threatening fourth-place finish in that race. His pedigree is interesting for the distance, though: he is by hot young sire Gun Runner out of a mare who is a full sister to Untapable and a half-sister to Paddy O’Prado.

Pros: He has a classy pedigree with upside at the distance, and he consistently finds minor awards against good horses.

Cons: He is a late runner in a race that may not get the pace war he needs, and a race that is often won by horses with more tactical running styles.

Tapit Shoes (Tapit x Awesome Flower - Flower Alley) - Post 1, 20-1 ML

Trainer: Brad Cox

He made his stakes debut in the Bath House Row at Oaklawn and made good account: the race was his stakes debut and he finished second, only a head behind Red Route One, a horse with legitimate Derby trail experience. His only win in five starts so far came in a maiden race at Fair Grounds, but his stakes debut was a promising one, and he showed a good tactical running style that day. His pedigree also appeals for the step up in trip, as he is by leading Belmont sire Tapit out of a Flower Alley mare who showed stamina on turf and dirt.

Pros: His pedigree appeals for 1 ½ miles and he has the tactical speed to work out a traditionally successful Belmont trip.

Cons: He has never tried graded stakes company before, and may still be overbet because Brad Cox trains him.

Tapit Trice (Tapit x Danzatrice - Dunkirk) - Post 2, 3-1 ML

Trainer: Todd Pletcher

Even as he went to Churchill Downs, this winner of both the Tampa Bay Derby and the Blue Grass Stakes was being hyped not as a Kentucky Derby type, but as a Belmont Stakes type. It’s no wonder: the Todd Pletcher trainee is not only by Belmont super-sire Tapit, but out of a classy mare who did her best work going long on dirt. He will need to start better, and his late-running style is a bit of a concern, but Mo Donegal also had some pace concerns for Pletcher going into last year’s Belmont, and he got the job done.

Pros: He has one of the better stamina pedigrees in the field and fits the profile of a live Todd Pletcher Belmont contender.

Cons: He is a late-running horse, and he has a tendency to leave himself a lot to do late, which hurt him in the Kentucky Derby.

TVG Belmont Park Coverage

TVG provides horse racing coverage and picks for all major races, including the Belmont Stakes in New York. Sign up with us today to receive your bonus and remember; our dedicated team is on hand to provide in-depth analysis, horse racing news, expert picks and up to date odds on the final leg of the 2023 Triple Crown at Belmont Park!