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Belmont Stakes 2019 Post Time: NBC TV Start Time, Final Predictions and More
June 8, 2019
Horse racing jumps into the national spotlight for the third time in six weeks with the Belmont Stakes on Saturday.
Although there is not as much glamour attached to the 2019 Belmont Stakes because of the lack of a Triple Crown chase, it is still shaping up to be an intriguing race.
Preakness Stakes champion War of Will headlines the 10-horse field, which is a bit weaker on paper than what we have seen in previous years.
Kentucky Derby third-place finisher Tacitus enters as the favorite, but War of Will is closely behind him on the odds chart as the second favorite.
As we have seen in the first two Triple Crown races, though, almost anything is possible.
Belmont Stakes Information
Post Time: 6:37 p.m. ET
TV Coverage: NBC (4-7 p.m. ET)
Post Positions and Odds
Predictions
1. War of Will
2. Tacitus
3. Tax
4. Everfast
5. Master Fencer
6. Sir Winston
7. Intrepid Heart
8. Joevia
9. Bourbon War
10. Spinoff
The first two Triple Crown races were dominated by what were perceived as the strongest horses in the field.
Before he was disqualified at the Kentucky Derby for impeding War of Will, Maximum Security controlled the race at Churchill Downs.
War of Will did the same at Pimlico Race Course three weeks ago on his way to the Preakness Stakes victory.
Expect that pattern to be followed by either War of Will or Tacitus, or both, during the 1.5-mile race at Belmont Park.
If you look further back down the racing history of the two favorites, they have performed well in some of the top events the sport has to offer.
War of Will has won four of his last six races, while Tacitus has three victories on his resume, including two against strong fields in the Wood Memorial and Tampa Bay Derby.
Tacitus carries an advantage in the rest department, too, since he sat out the Preakness to prepare for the Belmont.
While that could play a role in the longest race of the Triple Crown, War of Will is in strong form, and if he races up to his potential, he could easily storm away from a field with few other proven contenders.
Master Fencer carries the third-lowest odds into the Belmont, but there is no guarantee of him backing that up because of his lack of experience on American soil.
The Japanese horse earned a respectable sixth-place finish at the Kentucky Derby, but that was gained with an impressive finish rather than a great overall race at Churchill Downs.
Since a handful of long shots have performed well at the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, you should put some trust in at least one of those horses for the Belmont.
Everfast is the easy option to back as a dark-horse candidate because he took second at the Preakness at 50-1 odds.
If you follow the trend of the horse with the longest odds putting in a great performance, Joevia could also be worth the risk at 30-1.
The horses starting in the middle of the pack all have an opportunity to earn you money in trifecta and superfecta bets.
Jockey Mike Smith could guide Bourbon War through traffic and to the front of the pack, and the same can be said for Javier Castellano aboard Spinoff.
However, Tax is the pick here to break through from that collection of horses, even though he took 14th at the Kentucky Derby.
Tax could easily slide to the inside line on the track from post No. 4, and he produced a trio of top-three finishes in the buildup to the Kentucky Derby.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
Statistics obtained from Horse Racing Nation.