Belmont Stakes 2015: Latest Odds, Lineup Info and Top Horses for Elmont Race
Ahead of Wednesday's post position draw, the lineup for the 2015 Belmont Stakes will continue to shift right along with the odds.
The lone sure thing? American Pharoah will run the race, a marathon of sorts, in the hopes of smashing a 37-year Triple Crown drought.
Outside of such an obvious nugget, things remain in flux. For example, Todd Pletcher's Carpe Diem and Ken McPeek's The Truth or Else are out of the running, per the Associated Press.
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Expect further changes until the draw, but for now, here's a look at the probable field.
Belmont Stakes Projected Lineup
| American Pharoah | 4-5 |
| Frosted | 5-1 |
| Materiality | 13-2 |
| Madefromlucky | 12-1 |
| Mubtaahij | 16-1 |
| Keen Ice | 25-1 |
| Tale of Verve | 201 |
| Frammento | 22-1 |
Odds courtesy of Odds Shark as of June 2.
Top Horses
Materiality
It's a shame fans won't get to see Pletcher's Carpe Diem take the track, but one could argue Materiality was the legendary trainer's best chance in the first place.
A sixth-place finisher at the Kentucky Derby, Materiality features plenty of burst down the stretch to push for first, so long as his fresh legs after skipping the Preakness keep him within striking distance.
Churchill Downs announcer Travis Stone offers an interesting comparison for Pletcher's top horse, too:
It's also wise to take into account Pletcher himself, who continues to churn out strong performance after strong performance in New York.
Some of it comes down to great horses, while some of it is due to his smarts when it comes to the approach and his willingness to sit out at Pimlico.
All three combined, Materiality isn't one to ignore.
Frosted
Kiaran McLaughlin's Frosted came up just short at the Kentucky Derby behind the big three, those being American Pharoah, Dortmund and Firing Line.
After watching the Preakness Stakes from the sidelines, one of the sport's most dangerous closers seems ready to take on another talented field.
McLaughlin hopes the brutal stretch for American Pharoah thanks to the Triple Crown bid means things will open up for Frosted down the stretch.
"It looks like he will take a lot of beating," McLaughlin said, per Ed McNamara of Newsday. "We have to hope our horse runs an A-plus race and he runs a 'B' race."
Unlike at Churchill Downs, it's a safe bet Frosted will stay closer to the field this time around in the hopes of pulling off a late win. Given the chance the best horse becomes fatigued and Frosted's fresh legs shine when he needs them most, McLaughlin might have a spoiler on his hands.
American Pharoah
It's all hypothetical when it comes to a horse taking down American Pharoah at New York.
Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde explains how things will go ahead of the draw: "Every time, the Derby and Preakness winner is sent off as the overwhelming favorite. Every time since 1979, that horse has lost. But you can believe American Pharoah will be no worse than even money when the morning line is set at the post position draw Wednesday afternoon."
There's no other way to do things. American Pharoah just took down one of the deepest fields at Churchill Downs in the past decade or more—all from an iffy post. He then bested a small field at Pimlico, albeit in the slop thanks to rainstorms and against the rail, where he stopped opponents' efforts to pin him down in the short sprint.
Also remember Victor Espinoza will orchestrate the marathon, his third time going to New York for the chance at a Triple Crown.
The detractors will point out the length of the race, the short turnaround and American Pharoah's workload. But none of these things guarantee a loss, especially not after Baffert's top horse just put in the best race of his career in the Preakness on a short turnaround out of a poor post.
So while it's boring and predictable to classify American Pharoah as a top horse, it's a necessary evil of an evolving sport where the Triple Crown stretch continues to muddy the contender's chances.
American Pharoah is top horse heading to New York, for better or worse.
Stats and information via Preakness.com unless otherwise specified.
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