Belmont Stakes 2013: Post Position Draw Sets Up Epic Triple Crown Conclusion

The 145th running of the Belmont Stakes sports a deep 14-horse field, and with the way the post position draw shook out, the race promises to be an epic conclusion to the 2013 Triple Crown season.

Jim Gluckson, who does public relations work in the industry, points out how atypically large the pool of competitors is in this year's race:

The reference to Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas is appropriate, because his work netted a victory at the Preakness Stakes with Oxbow, with another Hall of Famer in Gary Stevens in the saddle. However, Oxbow is the No. 3 favorite, behind Kentucky Derby winner Orb and Revolutionary, who finished in third place at Churchill Downs.

Based on where those three will line up at the starting gates, this marquee showcase at Belmont Park has the makings of being a photo finish.

Here is a brief look at the entire field and where they'll be beginning from in the Run for the Carnations on Saturday in Elmont, New York.

Post Positions and Complete Field

Post No.	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Odds
1	Frac Daddy	Ken McPeek	Alan Garcia	30-1
2	Freedom Child	Tom Albertrani	Luis Saez	8-1
3	Overanalyze	Todd Pletcher	John Velazquez	12-1
4	Giant Finish	Anthony W. Dutrow	Edgar Prado	30-1
5	Orb	Shug McGaughey	Joel Rosario	3-1
6	Incognito	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	Irad Ortiz Jr.	20-1
7	Oxbow	D. Wayne Lukas	Gary Stevens	5-1
8	Midnight Taboo	Todd Pletcher	Garrett Gomez	30-1
9	Revolutionary	Todd Pletcher	Javier Castellano	9-2
10	Will Take Charge	D. Wayne Lukas	Jon Court	20-1
11	Vyjack	Rudy Rodriguez	Julien Leparoux	20-1
12	Palace Malice	Todd Pletcher	Mike E. Smith	15-1
13	Unlimited Budget	Todd Pletcher	Rosie Napravnik	8-1
14	Golden Soul	Dallas Stewart	Robby Albarado	10-1

*Odds are from morning line numbers, courtesy of America's Best Racing on Twitter.

As can be seen in the table, each of the projected top three are positioned with only one horse separating each of them. None are flanked by any entry with better than a 20-to-1 shot at finding the winners circle.

Given that Oxbow is reputed to be more of a sprinter than a distance racer—which is largely why he fared well at the Preakness—he will actually be in an advantageous spot to succeed at No. 7.

Since he's not the biggest horse, traffic threatens to be a problem, but absent any legitimate challengers in his immediate proximity, he'll be able to bolt out of the gates without much trouble.

Orb is the morning-line favorite yet again, and for good reason. His physicality is the envy of all his counterparts, and he has the speed to go with it, along with a jockey in Joel Rosario who leads his peers in money earnings in 2013.

Then there's Revolutionary, who will be ridden by a hungry Javier Castellano. He ranks second behind Rosario in terms of money earned this season, according to Equibase.com, and is renowned trainer Todd Pletcher's best chance to avoid missing out on a Triple Crown trophy this year.

Between joint longest shots Frac Daddy on the rail and Giant Finish at No. 4 to the inside will be two viable contenders in Freedom Child and Overanalyze.

That battle will be interesting to watch, because Freedom Child recently won the Grade II Peter Pan Stakes at Belmont Park, while Overanalyze is trying to redeem a disappointing 11th-place effort at the Kentucky Derby and boasts an Arkansas Derby win on his resume. John Velazquez will be the jockey, too, and he's won the Run for the Carnations twice, including last year with Union Rags.

On the far outside are two more horses that will look to maneuver their way to the front despite the challenge presented by being stretched so far out wide on the 1.5-mile track.

Rosie Napravnik will be riding Unlimited Budget, a filly trained by Pletcher who is listed at 8-to-1 in the morning line. The female jockey has already set records as a woman with a fifth-place effort at the Kentucky Derby and third-place finish in the Preakness aboard Mylute.

Farthest from the rail will be Golden Soul, who was a massive underdog at Churchill Downs but wound up second in the Run for the Roses. If not for Orb's surge, Dallas Stewart's upstart could have been the one generating Triple Crown buzz.

So there are plenty of compelling storylines in what promises to be an action-packed showdown. Whomever emerges victorious in this grueling test will have more bragging rights than usual as champion—even absent the possibility of an individual Triple Crown winner.