Before diving into our picks for Saturday’s Belmont Stakes, we must review what a month of May it was for all members of Harry Bondi’s “Steam Team.” Not only did we help our $100 players net $6,575 in earnings by betting on Major League Baseball and the NBA Playoffs, but we also scratched out a profit in both the Kentucky Derby and The Preakness.
In both of those races, however, a long shot horse crashed the party and prevented us from really cashing in big at the window. In the controversial Kentucky Derby, Country House, at 65-to-1, ended up being the winner after Maximum Security was disqualified while in The Preakness, Everfast came out of nowhere to place as a 50-to-1 shot.
So, as one of our favorite rock bands of all time likes to say, “We won’t get fooled again” this Saturday when the Belmont Stakes goes off. There are two prohibitive favorites in Saturday’s race: No. 9 War of Will, the Preakness winner who is currently 2-to-1 to win the Belmont, and No. 10 Tacitus, who was 9-to-5 on the morning line.
We love one of these horses (call 1-877-332-0077 right now to find out which one) and we expect to fill other spots on our exotic tickets with the other chalk horse as well as a couple long shots.
There are a few reasons we expect an outlier horse to come in the money this Saturday, and not just because it happened in both the Derby and Preakness. First off, recent history has not been good to the Belmont favorite. While 47% of the Belmonts have been won by the favorite, only two have prevailed since 2005.
Also in recent history, we’ve seen horses with rest cash tickets at the Belmont. Over the last five years, 12 of the 15 horses that have hit the board had at least four weeks of rest.
So, which long shots are we looking at? See below, and then call Harry Bondi at 1-877-332-0077 and find out how you can receive EVERY SELECTION we have in EVERY SPORT through July 7 for JUST $400!
No. 1 – Joevia – 30-to-1
The No. 1 post is the winningest in Belmont Stakes history with 24 wins. Joevia is one of five horses in the race that is changing jockeys and we think that’s a huge positive, in addition to the fact that he spent the winter at Belmont Park. Had a tough run at the Wood Memorial (11th), but bounced back with a victory on May 12 in the Long Branch at Monmouth Park and we like the way he’s progressing. Live long shot for sure!
No. 4 – Tax – 15-to-1
Ten of the last 12 Belmont winners had a trainer and/or jockey that’s based in New York, so we love that Tax is based at Belmont Park. He had a really tough run at the Kentucky Derby (14th), but he hated the track, hated the conditions and hated his post position. He’ll be able to sit on the pace and if he runs like he did at the Wood Memorial, where he took second, he will be a major factor on Saturday.
No. 8 – Intrepid Heart – 10-to-1
Back in 2013, trainer Todd Pletcher, who has three Belmont wins, took the blinders off Palace Malice and watched him as a 15-to-1 shot. Pletcher is doing the same thing this Saturday with Intrepid Heart, who has been breeded for this distance and is the most lightly raced horse in the field. He won his first two starts and then placed third at the Peter Pan after stumbling out of the gate. If he gets a clean ride on Saturday, look out!