Belmont Stakes Prop Bets: Winning Time, Margin of Victory, Will there Be an Inquiry & More

• Post time for the Belmont Stakes is 5:42pm ET on Saturday
• A field of 10 competitors are expected to run
• We look at some props for a fun and profitable betting experience below

In a wacky year, should we expect the unexpected Saturday at the Belmont Stakes?

What is normally the final leg of the Triple Crown will be run as the opening of the trio for the first time. It is two weeks late, cut down from the regular mile-and-a-half to a mile-and-an-eighth, and there will be no fans.

While COVID-19 has changed the sporting landscape, the Belmont was expected to have its normally strong group of three-year-olds before injuries and defections drastically altered the field and left Tiz The Law as a significant favorite.

The Belmont Stakes odds have seen substantial movement over the last couple of weeks, and even if you don’t love any one horse to win, or don’t see value to play a horse on the nose, props give you all sorts of betting opportunities.

Let’s look at some of our favorite alternative ways to bet on this unorthodox edition of The Belmont Stakes.

Belmont Stakes Margin of Victory Odds

*All odds taken 06/19/20

If the heavy hitters were all running, including Charlatan, Nadal and Maxfield, there would be a lot of quality and the expectation would be for a tight finish.

With Tiz The Law a big favorite, the chances that he blows them away is significant. Furthermore, what if Tap It To Win lulls the competition to sleep early on, and then runs away, or Pneumatic gets the first run and won’t be caught? Over seems like the more likely result, and the reduced juice is great.

Pick: Over 1.5 Lengths (-105)

Belmont Stakes Winning Time Odds

This is a total crap shoot. Belmont Park rarely runs 1 1/8 mile races on the dirt and there is no recent record of stakes horses at the distance. Tiz The Law completed the distance in 1:50:00 in March’s Florida Derby, but that was at Gulfstream Park around two turns. The Belmont Stakes will have just one turn.

The track record for the distance was set by Secretariat, who ran 1:45:40. The Belmont was run at a-mile-and-an-eighth in 1893 and 1894 with times of 1:53:25 and 1:56:50.

Our guess is these horses are closer to those of the 1800’s and Tiz The Law a few months ago than Secretariat, so let’s try the over.

Pick: Over 1:48.50 (-115)

Belmont Stakes Track Record-Breaking Odds

The weather forecast is expecting ideal conditions, warm and dry, but the track record belongs to the greatest race horse of all time, and as best we can tell none of the competitors in this one have wings. It would be a very tall task to run under 1:45:40.

Pick: Under 1:48.40 (-2500)

What Letter Will the Belmont Winner’s Name Start With?

If you think Tiz The Law has a 50% shot at winning, Pneumatic a 15% shot, Tap It To Win and Sole Volante each around 5%, that equates to 75%, or -300. While that group is likely to have the horse in the winner’s circle, -550 is really steep. Let’s take the price and root for Dr Post and Farmington Road.

Pick: A-M (+325)

Wire-to-Wire Winning Odds

This is a Tap It To Win prop. Before Fore Left entered the race it was assumed Tap It To Win would get the lead and go for as long as he could. Fore Left is almost surely over matched, and horses rarely win when making their first start after a trip home from Dubai, but he should be forwardly placed.

Will he cause a faster tempo than Tap It To Win wants? Even if Tap It To Win gets the perfect setup, alone on the lead with a slow pace, +550 is not a great value. The likelihood is he will get caught, and the price suggest that is the correct play.

Pick: No (-800)

Will There Be an Inquiry?

This prop never was considered prior to last year’s Kentucky Derby when Maximum Security was disqualified. Interestingly, there was no inquiry at the Kentucky Derby, since stewards did not review the result until a jockey objection was launched. An inquiry also does not require that the order of finish is changed, just that they take a extra close look at the running to make sure it was clean.

That said, inquiry’s don’t take place all that frequently. It is not a daily occurrence. This valuation indicates there is around a 12.5% chance of an inquiry. The reality is far lower.

Pick: No (-1200)