Gambling Today: Belmont Stakes Early Odds; Race Loses Top Contender; Maybe Another?

In a normal year the Belmont Stakes is the third leg horse racing’s prestigious triple crown event—but 2020 is anything but a normal year.

Bill Enright | May 29, 2020

Originally scheduled for June 6th and traditionally the last leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes has been rescheduled due to the coronavirus to June 20th. For the first time history, it will also be the first race in the Triple Crown.

There’s another change for this year’s prestigious race that takes place in Elmont, New York. The Belmont is typically the longest race in the Triple Crown but instead this year it will be the shortest race with a total length of 1 1/8 miles.

Sports Illustrated’s gambling analyst, Frank Taddeo, highlights the latest odds for this year’s Belmont’s Stakes in the above video.

Read the full transcript from his conversation with Bill Enright below:

Bill Enright: In any other year, when there's not a global pandemic, the Belmont Stakes is typically the third leg in the Triple Crown horse race. But this year, it's the first race. So let's get some of the odd shake-ups by going over to our gambling analyst, Frank Taddeo. Frank, take it away.

Frank Taddeo: Yeah, Bill, as you highlighted, I mean, the 2020 sports calendar has just been turned upside down, and being turned upside down has actually affected the horse racing industry. As we know, the Kentucky Derby has been moved to September 5th, while the Preakness has now been moved to October 3rd. And for the first time ever, the Belmont Stakes, normally the final race of the Triple Crown is actually gonna be going first. So the Belmont Stakes, commonly known as the test of champions, because it's normally the longest of the Triple Crown races, will now change since the order has been changed, and It's now going to be the shortest being run at a mile and an eighth. So it's going to become more of a prep race for the top contenders for the Kentucky Derby. And there was a shakeup bill in the betting odds and as well as the complexion of the race late Thursday. Nadal, an undefeated three-year-old trained by Bob Baffert, saw his career tragically cut short. One of the early favorites for a potential Triple Crown run was retired with a fracture in his left front leg, suffered during a workout Thursday at Santa Anita Park. We also learned that Charlatan, who is one of the top favorites and also trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, his status is now up in the air with reports that he tested positive for a banned substance in Arkansas. It's uncertain how the positive test will affect his eligibility for the race as well. One of the most prestigious races in the entire industry may now be devoid of two of the top horses in the country. Come June 20th. Keep an eye, though, Bill, on Dr. Post, as well as Todd Pletcher's Modernist as two potential long shots I am very high on. I will have a complete handicapping breakdown in the days leading up to the Belmont Stakes once positions are drawn. Time to make some money, Bill on a sport commonly known in the betting circles as the "sport of kings."

Bill Enright: Yeah, I'm certainly missing out on some horse racing, the Kentucky Derby should have happened over a month ago, the Preakness should have happened two weeks ago. Instead, we haven't had either but I'm looking forward to the Belmont. Frank, I'm also looking forward to your betting odds and predictions coming up in a couple of weeks once we get closer to the Belmont. Great stuff, as always. Plenty more gambling and insight from Sports Illustrated. You can find it by going to SI.com/gambling.

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Published May 29, 2020

BILL ENRIGHT

Bill Enright is the Managing Editor of Sports Illustrated's Sports Betting and Fantasy division. He's an award winning fantasy football analyst and has a winning betting record on NFL Player Props since 2017. Follow Bill on Twitter: @BillEnright