Belmont Stakes Betting Preview: Exaggerator Strong Odds Favorite Against Field

After pulling off a small upset in winning the Preakness Stakes over favored Nyquist, Exaggerator is listed as the 5-4 betting favorite at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark to finish first in the Belmont Stakes on Saturday.

Exaggerator drew the No. 11 post out of 13 horses in a 2016 Belmont field that will not include Nyquist, and that position has led to three winners in the previous 14 years (2002, 2003 and 2014). Nyquist placed third in the Preakness and will sit out the Belmont.

However, going off as the favorite has not worked out well recently outside of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, who became the first horse to win the Belmont as chalk since Afleet Alex in 2005.

Afleet Alex is also the last horse to win the last two Triple Crown races after finishing third in the Kentucky Derby. Exaggerator is trying to become the 53rd horse to win two legs of the Triple Crown and 19th to win the last two.

The top challengers for Exaggerator in the 2016 Belmont Stakes look to be Stradivari (No. 5 post position) and Suddenbreakingnews (No. 4), who are both listed at 7-1 betting odds.

Cherry Wine (No. 3) and Destin (No. 2) round out the group of horses with odds of less than 10-1 at 8-1 and 9-1, respectively. Cherry Wine ended up finishing second in the Preakness, while Stradivari was fourth in his first Triple Crown race.

Besides Exaggerator, Lani (No. 10) is the only other horse who will participate in all three Triple Crown races. Lani is listed at 16-1 and placed fifth in the Preakness after finishing ninth in the Kentucky Derby. Suddenbreakingnews was fifth in the Derby but skipped the Preakness, as trainer Donnie K. Von Hemel said it was the best thing for the horse, per Marty McGee of Daily Racing Form (via ESPN.com).

Brody's Cause (No. 12) is another three-year-old who did not run in the Preakness after placing seventh at Churchill Downs, and he is 14-1 to win the Belmont.

It's worth noting that Exaggerator jockey Kent Desormeaux recently returned from a short stay in a drug and alcohol rehab center in Utah to treat his struggles with the latter. His younger brother Keith is also Exaggerator's trainer and has supported him throughout, making them perhaps the sentimental favorite to win the Belmont as well.