In 2021 the Belmont is back to its normal place on the racing calendar: the final jewel of the Triple Crown. It will be run on Saturday, June 5, 2021, and drew a field of eight horses including some of the very best three-year-olds in the country. This is the place for an in-depth preview and free betting picks.
As the race gets closer, Belmont Stakes betting odds will continue to firm up. Here are the likely favorites for the Belmont Stakes, as well as the odds you can get if you bet them online now:
 |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essential Quality | +225 | +200 | +200 |
| Rombauer | +375 | +300 | +300 |
| Hot Rod Charlie | +400 | +350 | +350 |
| Rock Your World | +425 | +450 | +450 |
| Known Agenda | +600 | +600 | +600 |
Before you bet the Belmont Stakes, this is a great time to sign up for an online sportsbook. The best online sportsbooks, like Bovada, are offering excellent deposit bonuses that can earn you hundreds of dollars in free bets, just for signing up and funding your account. This can help make betting the Belmont from the comfort of home even more profitable!
The Triple Crown So Far
After being delayed in 2020 due to the pandemic, the 2021 Triple Crown returned to its normal schedule. Medina Spirit crossed the wire first in the Kentucky Derby, though further drug testing will tell whether he will be allowed to keep those laurels or pass them on to Mandaloun. Neither Medina Spirit nor any of his Bob Baffert stablemates are allowed to run the Belmont.
Rombauer, for trainer Michael McCarthy, upset the Preakness Stakes at odds of +1180. He had prepared with a win in the El Camino Real Stakes and a third-place finish behind Essential Quality in the Blue Grass. Rombauer will return in the Belmont Stakes, where he will try to become the first horse since Afleet Alex to win the Preakness and Belmont but not the Derby.
The Belmont Stakes is called the Test of the Champion. Though it was shortened to a mile and an eighth when Tiz the Law won in 2020, it returns to its traditional, demanding distance this year: a mile and a half. No horse in the Belmont Stakes has run more than a mile and a quarter, making this a difficult new challenge for all.
Though a full-size crowd will not be permitted to return to Belmont Park for this year’s running, it will not be spectator-free like last year. Belmont Park will allow 11,000 spectators in for the Belmont, with proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test.
Fortunately, if you are not one of the lucky 11,000 who can be in New York for the big race, you can still enjoy all of the Belmont Stakes excitement at home. Wager on the Belmont at one of these top sportsbooks, and enjoy the best odds and player bonuses from the safety and convenience of your living room:
Belmont Stakes Field and Odds
These are the official entrants for the 2021 Belmont Stakes, along with their post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning line odds:
-
Bourbonic - Todd Pletcher/Kendrick Carmouche (15/1)
-
Essential Quality - Brad Cox/Luis Saez (2/1)
-
Rombauer - Michael McCarthy/John Velazquez (3/1)
-
Hot Rod Charlie - Doug O’Neill/Flavien Prat (7/2)
-
France Go de Ina - Hideyuki Mori/Ricardo Santana, Jr. (30/1)
-
Known Agenda - Todd Pletcher/Irad Ortiz, Jr. (6/1)
-
Rock Your World - John Sadler/Joel Rosario (9/2)
-
Overtook - Todd Pletcher/Manuel Franco (20/1)
These odds are simply the morning line, the track’s best guess as to what the odds will be in the pari-mutuel pools. Your best bet is to keep checking the odds at the best online sportsbooks and lock them in with a wager once you see the odds you like on your horse.
Belmont Contenders
#2 Essential Quality ran only fourth in the Derby, seeing his first career defeat. But, he raced several lengths off the pace after a tough start, in a race where speed held very well. He rallied to be beaten by only a length. In a smaller field, Essential Quality can get a spot closer to the early pace. It is also good that he is by Tapit, who has sired three Belmont winners already.
#6 Known Agenda got in trouble early in the Kentucky Derby from the rail draw, having to settle near last early. This time he drew a much better post and should get a much cleaner trip. He has an excellent pedigree to stretch out, and his trainer Todd Pletcher has won three Belmonts already. His jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. is also the leading rider at Belmont Park, meaning he knows very well how to ride the sprawling mile and a half oval.
#7 Rock Your World had some early trouble in the Kentucky Derby and was knocked off of his usual front-running style. He shouldn’t have as much trouble here and drew a clean outside post from which he should be able to clear off. Belmont can run friendly to speed, particularly on big days, and he has enough distance in the dam’s side of his pedigree to suggest he might stay the trip.
Though both #3 Rombauer and #4 Hot Rod Charlie will take a lot of money, there are reasons to be skeptical of both. Rombauer is in good form, but his pedigree raises questions about how much he wants to stretch out to a mile and a half. Hot Rod Charlie’s dam side also raises pedigree questions, as does his trainer Doug O’Neill’s poor record in the Belmont so far.
Belmont Longshot
#8 Overtook will be the longest price of Todd Pletcher’s horses. But, Pletcher can run well in the Belmont, especially with a horse who has as much distance pedigree as Overtook has. This midpack type handled the Belmont surface well enough in the Peter Pan, and should be primed to improve second off the layoff.
Free Belmont Bets
Here are your best bets for the 2021 Belmont Stakes!
-
$20 to win - #6 Known Agenda
-
$1 exacta box - #6 Known Agenda, #2 Essential Quality and #7 Rock Your World
-
$1 trifecta box - #6 Known Agenda, #2 Essential Quality, #7 Rock Your World, #8 Overtook
-
20 cent superfecta key - #6 Known Agenda with #2 Essential Quality, #3 Rombauer, #7 Rock Your World, #8 Overtook
Belmont Undercard Plays
The Belmont Stakes undercard features some of the classiest horse racing of the year. There are eight other graded stakes on Saturday, all but one of them being Grade 1. Make sure to consider these horses in win and exotic wagers throughout the day:
-
Race 3 - $400,000 Woody Stephens S. (G1) - #3 Jackie’s Warrior
-
Race 4 - $400,000 Brooklyn S. (G2) - #7 Ajaaweed
-
Race 5 - $500,000 Acorn S. (G1) - #2 Obligatory
-
Race 6 - $400,000 Jaipur S. (G1) - #11 Got Stormy, #6 Bound for Nowhere
-
Race 7 - $500,000 Ogden Phipps S. (G1) - #3 Letruska
-
Race 8 - $500,000 Just a Game S. (G1) - #11 Blowout
-
Race 9 - $1 million Metropolitan H. (G1) - #6 Knicks Go
-
Race 10 - $750,000 Manhattan S. - #9 Gufo, #2 Bye Bye Melvin
