Belmont Stakes 2015 Contenders: Race-Day Overview for Entire Field and Undercard

Horse racing is starved for a Triple Crown winner, and American Pharaoh will rumble into Saturday's Belmont Stakes with a chance to become the first horse to accomplish the feat in 37 years.

Many have attempted and failed to seize the Triple Crown since Affirmed last did it in 1978, but that hasn't dampened the enthusiasm surrounding American Pharoah. His level of performance improved from the Kentucky Derby to the Preakness Stakes, and if he is even better at Belmont Park, then he could make history.

While all eyes will be on American Pharoah, he isn't the only horse running, as several other impressive equine athletes will compete in the Belmont Stakes and as part of the undercard too.

Here is a full listing of the field for the third leg of the Triple Crown, a closer look at some potential contenders and a rundown of the full schedule for Saturday's slate of races.

Belmont Stakes Lineup

Post No.	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Morning-Line Odds
1	Mubtaahij	Irad Ortiz Jr.	Mike de Kock	14-1
2	Tale of Verve	Gary Stevens	Dallas Stewart	20-1
3	Madefromlucky	Javier Castellano	Todd Pletcher	14-1
4	Frammento	Mike Smith	Nick Zito	40-1
5	American Pharoah	Victor Espinoza	Bob Baffert	5-7
6	Frosted	Joel Rosario	Kiaran McLaughlin	6-1
7	Keen Ice	Kent Desormeaux	Dale Romans	25-1
8	Materiality	John Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	13-2

Undercard Schedule

Race No.	Race Name	Post Time (ET)
1	Easy Goer Stakes	11:35 a.m.
2	Allowance	12:07 p.m.
3	Woody Stephens Stakes	12:39 p.m.
4	Jaipur Invitational Stakes	1:15 p.m.
5	Ogden Phipps Stakes	1:52 p.m.
6	Brooklyn Invitational Stakes	2:34 p.m.
7	Acorn Stakes	3:15 p.m.
8	Just a Game Stakes	4 p.m.
9	Metropolitan Handicap	4:49 p.m.
10	Manhattan Stakes	5:46 p.m.
11	Belmont Stakes	6:50 p.m.
12	Optional Claiming	7:38 p.m.
13	Optional Claiming	8:12 p.m.

Breaking Down Potential Belmont Stakes Contenders

Frosted

Garry Jones/Associated Press

American Pharoah used a late push to take down the field in the Kentucky Derby, but with more time and under different circumstances, Frosted could have potentially given him a run for his money.

The Kiaran McLaughlin-trained colt finished that race in fourth, but he was picking up steam late and was forced to run a much longer distance than the other horses aside from American Pharoah because of the trip he was dealt.

According to Ron Flatter of Fox News Radio, McLaughlin feels as though Frosted was better than every horse other than the eventual winner that day at Churchill Downs:

McLaughlin has been thoroughly impressed with American Pharoah, and while he has plenty of confidence in his horse, he also believes that the favorite will have to be off his game to some degree in order for Frosted to win, per Jennie Rees of the Courier-Journal:

"

It's a whole lot different. It's a much tougher race with one main horse. American Pharoah looks like a superstar and is going to be very hard to beat. The closer we get to the race, I just have to keep going back to the fact that it's been a long time since we've had a Triple Crown winner. I've watched his workouts and he just looks like a special horse. Like I said, I love our horse. He couldn't be doing better. But wow, it's going to take a sub-par race from American Pharoah, I'm afraid.

"

It isn't outside the realm of possibility that American Pharoah could have a poor race since he has run so frequently in comparison to his opponents. 

Frosted did not compete in the Preakness Stakes despite his great run in the Kentucky Derby, and that should ultimately help him Saturday since he will enter the race fresh.

If stamina does end up playing a role, then Frosted is one of the likeliest candidates to take advantage of the situation.

Madefromlucky

Julie Jacobson/Associated Press

While the bulk of the horses in Saturday's field competed in at least the Kentucky Derby or Preakness Stakes, Madefromlucky is set to make his Triple Crown debut. There is an element of mystery involved with him, and that could potentially help the colt surprise American Pharoah.

Madefromlucky, who is trained by Todd Pletcher, is coming off a win in the Peter Pan Stakes. That race took place at Belmont Park, so he has familiarity with the track and momentum on his side, which not every horse can boast of.

He has also competed against Pharoah in the past, finishing fourth to him in the Arkansas Derby and second to him in the Rebel Stakes. He hasn't figured out how to beat Pharoah yet, but he won't be intimidated.

The hallmark of the Belmont Stakes is its length at 1 ½ miles. That could be a problem for a horse like American Pharoah due to his busy racing schedule since the Derby, but Pletcher believes Madefromlucky will handle it just fine, according to Christie DeBernardis of TDN:

Provided Pletcher's hunch is correct, Madefromlucky has a fighting chance, especially if American Pharoah ends up struggling.

There is no question that Pletcher would love to spoil old rival Bob Baffert's bid for a Triple Crown, and Madefromlucky may represent his best chance to do just that.

Tale of Verve

Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Nobody was going to catch American Pharoah in the Preakness Stakes as he turned in a dominant performance that far exceeded what he did in the Kentucky Derby, but Tale of Verve was the closest to posing a challenge.

Few expected him to do anything at Pimlico Race Course, but he turned in a strong showing and finished in second place. After such a surprising outing, he is back for the Belmont Stakes and looking to take another run at Pharoah.

It is difficult to say how he will handle the distance since he has never run a race as long as the Belmont, but trainer Dallas Stewart thinks it will play into his strengths, according to HRRN:

As far as the Triple Crown races are concerned, the Belmont Stakes features the most surprising winners. That is due to the fact that there are so many variables between the length of the race and how rested the competitors are.

Tale of Verve is the only horse other than American Pharoah in Saturday's field who ran in the Preakness Stakes, so he isn't as fresh as some other colts, but he enters the race in a rhythm.

It is possible that he will handle the three-week layoff better than Pharoah, and that could potentially lead to one of the biggest upsets in horse racing history.

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