Belmont Stakes 2012 Odds: Breaking Down Favorites and Biggest Longshots

With the Belmont Stakes just three days away, there are a lot of questions surrounding whether there will be the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed won it in 1978. I'll Have Another is the first horse to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown since Big Brown in 2008.

While the gambling odds are showing in favor of I'll Have Another, there are questions as to whether he should be the favorite. There are also quite a few longshots in this year's Belmont Stakes who could end up spoiling another yet another Triple Crown run.

The top three favorites are Union Rags, Dullahan and I'll Have Another. The top three longshots to spoil the race are Guyana Star Dweej, Ravelos Boy and Five Sixteen. Sportsbook.ag (Bleacher Report's Wes O'Donnell) posts the following odds in his betting guide for the Belmont Stakes:

Atigun: 40-1

Dullahan: 6-1

Five Sixteen: 60-1

Guyanna Star Dweej: 60-1

I'll Have Another: 6-4

Optimizer: 35-1

Paynter: 10-1

Ravelo's Boy: 60-1

Street Life: 18-1

Union Rags: 4-1

Unstoppable U: 35-1

Longshot No. 3: Guyana Star Dweej

Guyana Star Dweej wasn't expected to be the top horse in the Belmont because of injuries that have kept him out of races. However, with top notch jockey Kent Desormeaux, this could be the one horse that comes from behind to win a Triple Crown race.

Desormeaux was the jockey of the last Triple Crown challenger Big Brown and while he lost in that race, it had more to do with an injury that Big Brown had than the talent of the horse or the jockey. The Associated Press has quoted owner Doodnauth Shivmangal as saying,

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"I met with my wife and kids and we decided to go with Kent. We felt it was the right decision to have an experienced jockey who knows what it takes. We believe in loyalty, but this is a big race and not a small race. You have to have somebody who knows how to do it."

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The trust in Desormeaux is a second chance for the 42-year old's flailing tail-end to his career and while Guyana Star Dweej has all the talent to win the race, don't expect it to be the one who takes down I'll Have Another on Saturday.

Gambling Odds: 60-1

Longshot No. 2: Ravelo's Boy

Ravelo's Boy is one of the more durable horses in the Belmont Stakes this year. He isn't known for being the fastest or the best horse in the race; however, his endurance could lead him to being the best over the mile-and-a-half long track.

While Ravelo's Boy may not be the one who will win this year's Belmont Stakes, Jim Freer of The Miami Herald shows he's a realistic shot to get towards the top of the finishers:

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With the exception of I’ll Have Another, Union Rags and Dullahan, racing analyst Toby Callet feels that Ravelo’s Boy “has a better chance than most to round out the trifecta or superfecta” in the 1 1/2-mile Belmont.

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Ravelo's Boy is the best bet for a finisher in the Superfecta for the Belmont Stakes and could compete for the title, but it will take multiple lucky events for him to win the race.

Gambling Odds: 60-1

Longshot No. 1: Five Sixteen

According to Matt Gardner of SBNation.com,

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It's tough to find nuggets in the career of Five Sixteen that suggests he has a chance to pull an upset in the Belmont Stakes. A son of former Horse of the Year Invasor (ARG), it took Five Sixteen five tries to break his maiden, which he finally did in mid-March at Aqueduct. In his next and more recent start, Five Sixteen finished fourth beaten over 11 lengths against Allowance company.

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Five Sixteen is the true example of a real long shot, and while he likely won't win the Belmont Stakes and spoil the first true threat at the Triple Crown since Big Brown in 2008, he should still be able to compete for a spot in the Superfecta.

Five Sixteen has the heritage and natural talent to be competitive in the horse racing world, but the talent to win the races is something he just doesn't seem to have at this point.

Gambling Odds: 60-1

Favorite No. 3: Union Rags

Union Rags is one of the top favorites to win the final leg of the Triple Crown on Saturday. He will have to compete with a new jockey on his back; however, the Chicago Tribune's Chris Korman is saying,

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With the Triple Crown on the line for the 12th time since Affirmed last won it in 1978, Union Rags and Dullahan have emerged as top competitors to prevent I'll Have Another's bid.

That's no surprise. Union Rags was the second favorite in the Kentucky Derby but finished a hard-charging seventh after jockey Julien Leparoux became entangled in traffic.

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And it's hard to disagree with him. Korman makes a great point that with Union Rags expected to finish second in the Kentucky Derby that it was a let-down for him to not win the race. Union Rags is looking to spoil the Triple Crown bid of I'll Have Another and with a new jockey in John Velazquez, he'll stand a better chance.

Gambling Odds: 4-1

Favorite No. 2: Dullahan

While no one wants to be known as the Triple Crown spoiler, Dullahan has the best shot at doing so. USA Today's Gary Mihoces quoted Dullahan's trainer Dale Romans as saying,

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"I'd like to have 120,000 people booing me on the way back to my barn. I can handle it," the Louisville-based Romans said with a smile today at the Belmont Stakes media luncheon at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan.

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Even if he does have those 120,000 people booing him on the way back to his barn, he will enjoy the money he wins for being the trainer of the winner of the longest race in the Triple Crown at over a mile and a half.

Gambling Odds: 6-1

Favorite No. 1: I'll Have Another

I'll Have Another is the big favorite in the Belmont after winning the first two legs of the Triple Crown, the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. I'll Have Another jockey Mario Guitierrez is one of the best in this year's Triple Crown and will be the main reason why the first Triple Crown contender since 2008 will be the odds on favorite.

I'll Have Another's trainer has been quoted by NY Daily News' Jerry Bossert as saying,

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“I got to know him the last six months,” the trainer said. “He’s just a confident, humble kid. If he was going to melt, the Santa Anita Derby, the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness is where he would have melted and he hasn’t. He’s looking at it the same way we all are. It would be an unbelievable experience. We would be the 12th team to win the Triple Crown. It’s all kind of icing right now. If he doesn’t win Saturday, it’s been the greatest journey of all time.

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That ice water will have to be flowing in full force for this Saturday's race, and if it does, there could be the first Triple Crown winner since 1978.

Gambling Odds: 6-4