Triple Crown 2020: Odds for All Horses' Pursuits Starting at Belmont Stakes

By the beginning of June 2019, we had already witnessed a disqualification in the Kentucky Derby and a runaway horse in the Preakness Stakes. In 2018, we were watching Justify join the elusive list of Triple Crown-winning horses.

That's not the case in 2020.

We've reached the middle of June, and we haven't had a Triple Crown race.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Belmont Stakes became the opening leg of the 2020 Triple Crown on June 20, while the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes were both pushed to the fall.

Belmont will be run without fans and at a shorter distance—1 ⅛ miles instead of 1 ½. The organiser is still trying to make the viewing experience fun for all fans, and you can find some of the plans here.

The field is oddly without any Bob Baffert horses after two of his top three-year-olds were sidelined because of injury. He trained the past two Triple Crown winners—the only ones this century. Saturday's Belmont Stakes will see one of his peers make it one down, two to go in their quest to replicate his achievements.

2020 Triple Crown Information

Belmont Stakes

Date: Saturday, June 20

Post Time: 5:42 p.m. ET

TV: NBC (Coverage begins at 3 p.m. ET)

Live stream: New York Racing Association YouTube Channel, NBC Sports app

Kentucky Derby

Date: Saturday, September 5

TV: NBC

Live stream: NBC Sports app

Preakness Stakes

Date: Saturday, October 3

TV: NBC

Live stream: NBC Sports app

2020 Belmont Stakes Odds

1. Tap It To Win: 6-1

2. Sole Volante: 9-2

3. Max Player: 15-1

4. Modernist: 15-1

5. Farmington Road: 15-1

6. Fore Left: 30-1

7. Jungle Runner: 50-1

8. Tiz The Law: 6-5

9. Dr Post: 5-1

10. Pneumatic: 8-1

Tiz The Law is the horse to beat in the first jewel of the Triple Crown.

The New York-bred thoroughbred has been the favorite all along—placing first the Florida Derby (G1) in March and winning four of his five career starts—and the post-position draw didn't change that.

Many people think it's "his race to lose," including New York Racing Association's Richard Migliore, per CBS New York.

"He is just training so well on top of being what I consider to be the best three-year-old this year," Migliore added. "Tiz the Law has been doing everything extremely professional. Could not look better in the morning."

His trainer, Barclay Tagg, is also happy with how the three-year-old has been working out. According to NBC Sports, the stallion is aiming to become just the fourth horse out of New York to win the Belmont Stakes—and first since 1882.

Tiz The Law is in a great position entering Saturday's race, but there are other solid competitors that could give the favorite a run for his money.

One of those is Tap It To Win.

Not only will Tap It To Win be racing from the No. 1 post—the position that has produced the most wins (24)—but he's also shown that he has the speed to find success in shorter races at Belmont. The son of Tapit won a 1 1/16-mile race at Belmont Park on June 4 and reached a career-best 97 Beyer Speed Figure, per BloodHorse.

That dominant win saw him jump up in class to race at Belmont. However, he hasn't had luck in the past in tougher races, placing last in the Grade 1 Claiborne Breeders' Futurity and the Street Sense Stakes.

The other horses that could challenge Tiz The Law are Sole Volante and Dr Post.

Sole Volante recorded a career-best 102 Brisnet speed figure at the Grade 3 Sam F. Davis race in February, one month after hitting 100 at the Mucho Macho Man Stakes, per Neil Greenberg of the Washington Post. Dr Post, meanwhile, also notched a career-best speed figure this year, 104 at Gulfstream in March, and had a commanding 1 ½-length win in April's Unbridled Stakes.

Like Tap It To Win, the test for Dr Post will be how he fares in a graded stakes competition. Given everything surrounding the race, it figures to be a fascinating watch.