Getting Ready for the 2022 Belmont Stakes
The 2022 Belmont Stakes is set for June 11th. And we’re getting you ready for it.
Key Points
– Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike will compete in the 2022 Belmont Stakes.
– Five horses in the field are given better than +1000 odds to win the Belmont in 2022.
The 2022 Belmont Stakes
The 2022 Belmont Stakes is set for the second Saturday in June at Belmont Park. Bettors getting ready for the 2022 Belmont Stakes should know that Kentucky Derby longshot winner Rich Strike will be in the field.
There will not be a Triple Crown winner this year, but there are a number of horses to keep an eye on in betting this race. We’re your #1 source for horse racing picks.
Derby Winner Rich Strike
The second-biggest longshot ever to win the Kentucky Derby, Rich Strike is back to run the Belmont. The horse was given 80-1 odds to win at Churchill Downs. Derby winner Rich Strike did not run the preakness.
Rich Strike was a late addition to the Kentucky Derby field. As a result, the plan had always been to rest the horse after the Derby and prepare for the Belmont.
The Kentucky Derby winner is listed at +350 to win at Belmont. That places Rich Strike in the same position as We the People, which is also given +350 odds to win.
ICYMI: MLB MONEYLINE UNDERDOGS
The Favorite for the 2022 Belmont Stakes
The role of Belmont Stakes favorite belongs to Mo Donegal, which rode the rail at the Kentucky Derby and ultimately finished fifth.
Like Rich Strike, Mo Donegal did not run in the 2022 Preakness Stakes. Even without racing at the Preakness, Mo Donegal is the overall Belmont favorite at +300.
Early Voting was the Preakness winner, but the horse will not run at Belmont.
Bookie Alert > Pay Per Head Fixed-Odds Horse Betting Options
Top Contenders
Coming in third place at the 2022 Preakness was Creative Minister. The three-year-old colt is given +500 odds to win at Belmont.
With the announcement that Epicenter is unlikely to run at Belmont, Creative Minister, along with Rich Strike and We the People, is the leading candidate to push Mo Donegal for the win.
Epicenter became just the first horse in over a decade to finish second at both the Kentucky Derby and at the Preakness. Running at the Belmont Stakes would mean a third race in five weeks. According to owner Ron Winchell, Epicenter likely would not run well without more rest.
The only other horse given better than +1000 odds is Nest, a three-year-old filly. Nest did not run in either the Kentucky Derby or the Preakness.
Between December and April, Nest won three consecutive races. The filly finished second in its last race, the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks on May 6.
2022 Belmont Stakes Facts
The Belmont Stakes is the longest of the three included in the Triple Crown of Horse Racing. The 1.5-mile distance favors horses with both speed and stamina. You can bet common bets or exotics. Check out an online racebook for easy access.
Historically, the betting favorite does pretty well. The Belmont favorite has won 42 percent of the time – 65 of 153 races. That includes each of the last two winners – Essential Quality in 2021 and Tiz the Law in 2020.
With a win at Belmont, Rich Strike would become the 12th horse to pull the Kentucky Derby-Belmont Stakes double without winning the Triple Crown. The most recent to do it was Thunder Gulch back in 1995. All 11 horses competed in the Preakness unlike Rich Strike.