Meet the horses running in the Belmont Stakes

Preakness 150 brought astir 63,000 radical to Baltimore

Preakness 150 brought astir 63,000 radical to Baltimore 00:30

The Belmont Stakes is acceptable to big a rematch successful New York connected Saturday of the apical 3 finishing horses from the Kentucky Derby to adjacent retired equine racing's Triple Crown for 2025.

Five weeks aft Sovereignty won the Derby implicit Journalism and Baeza, the 3 horses volition beryllium among the 8 competing successful the past contention of the Triple Crown — the bid for 3-year-olds consisting of the Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont. Sovereignty's connections chose to skip the Preakness successful Baltimore to hole for the Belmont, meaning nary equine would triumph the Triple Crown this year.

2025 Belmont Stakes horses and odds

Journalism, who won the Preakness 2 weeks aft coming successful 2nd astatine the Derby, was picked arsenic the morning-line favourite for the Belmont with 8-5 odds. The odds volition alteration arsenic bettors spot their wagers starring up to Saturday's approximate station clip of 7:04 p.m. EDT. Here's a database of each the horses racing successful the Belmont successful bid by their fig with their morning-line odds:

• 1. Hill Road, 10-1
• 2. Sovereignty, 2-1
• 3. Rodriguez, 6-1
• 4. Uncaged, 30-1
• 5. Crudo, 15-1
• 6. Baeza, 4-1
• 7. Journalism, 8-5
• 8. Heart of Honor, 30-1

The Belmont volition beryllium 1 1/4 miles agelong alternatively of the accustomed 1 1/2 miles, making the contention known arsenic the Test of the Champion the aforesaid magnitude arsenic the Derby. The alteration is due to the fact that the Belmont is temporarily being held astatine Saratoga Race Course successful Saratoga Springs, New York, astir a 45-minute thrust northbound of the authorities superior of Albany.

"Shame the Belmont is not a mile-and-a-half," said Heart of Honor's trainer, Jamie Osborne, according to a quality merchandise aft the Preakness. The brownish colt didn't person the champion start, but passed 4 horses to decorativeness 5th successful the 1 3/16-mile race, the shortest of the Triple Crown races. 

The Belmont is expected to instrumentality to Long Island's Belmont Park adjacent twelvemonth aft the completion of a massive redevelopment project.

While the Triple Crown has been won doubly successful the past decennary — with American Pharoah ending a 37-year drought successful 2015 and Justify successful 2018 — winning conscionable the Preakness and the Belmont has go much of a novelty. It was past accomplished in 2005 by Afleet Alex, who finished 3rd successful the Derby.

At the Preakness, Journalism barreled down the agelong to flooded Gosger and triumph by fractional a magnitude astatine Pimlico Race Course. The bay colt was the morning-line favourite for the Preakness arsenic good arsenic the Derby, winning implicit oddsmakers with 4 consecutive victories successful California, including April's Santa Anita Derby, March's San Felipe Stakes and December's Los Alamitos Futurity Stakes.

Jockey Umberto Rispoli, who was aboard Journalism for those 3 races, the Preakness and the Derby, volition person the equine again for the Belmont. Journalism's trainer, Michael McCarthy, has lone had 1 different equine successful the Belmont, Rombauer, who came successful 3rd successful 2021.

Journalism trains connected the way for the 157th moving of the Belmont Stakes astatine Saratoga Race Course connected June 5, 2025, successful Saratoga Springs, New York. Al Bello/Getty Images

With 2-1 likelihood successful the greeting line, Sovereignty volition effort to execute a rarer feat than winning conscionable the Preakness and the Belmont: victories astatine the Derby and the Belmont. The past equine to bash that was Thunder Gulch successful 1995 aft finishing 3rd astatine the Preakness.

While Sovereignty skipped the Triple Crown's mediate jewel, the bay colt wasn't wholly retired of the news. His jockey, Junior Alvarado, was fined $62,000 and suspended for 2 racing days successful Kentucky by the state's Board of Stewards for allegedly utilizing his riding harvest excessively overmuch successful the Derby. Alvarado is appealing the decision.

Alvarado volition beryllium riding Sovereignty connected Saturday, which volition beryllium the jockey's 4th equine successful the Belmont. Last year, helium was aboard Resilience, who finished successful 10th spot and was trained by Bill Mott. The 2 person teamed up again with Sovereignty. Mott has trained a Belmont victor earlier — Drosselmeyer, who won successful 2010.

Sovereignty comes into the Belmont aft finishing 2nd astatine March's Florida Derby and winning the Fountain of Youth Stakes successful Florida and October's Street Sense Stakes astatine Churchill Downs, the location of the Derby.

Sovereignty breezes during greeting workouts connected the Oklahoma Training Track astatine Saratoga Race Course successful Saratoga Springs, New York, June 4, 2025. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Baeza didn't initially gully a station for the Derby and lone entered the tract erstwhile Rodriguez was scratched from the contention 2 days earlier the Run for the Roses. He broke from the station connected the acold extracurricular and came successful 3rd down Journalism by a neck. Before the Derby, the bay colt came successful 2nd astatine the Santa Anita Derby, besides down Journalism.

Baeza was fixed 4-1 morning-line likelihood for the Belmont and volition beryllium nether Flavien Prat, who besides had the equine successful the Derby. Prat's been successful the past 4 runnings of the Belmont, riding Hot Rod Charlie to 2nd spot successful 2021. Trainer John Shirreffs has had 3 different horses successful the Belmont, astir precocious Gormley, who came successful 4th in 2017.

Baeza breezes during his greeting workout astatine Saratoga Race Course successful Saratoga Springs, New York, June 4, 2025. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Rodriguez was scratched from the Derby implicit what co-owner Tom Ryan described arsenic a "small but somewhat delicate ft bruise." Trainer Bob Baffert said the acheronian bay colt has healed and is performing arsenic good arsenic helium was earlier helium won the Wood Memorial Stakes successful April astatine New York City's Aqueduct Racetrack, according to a New York Racing Association quality release.

Baffert has trained 3 Belmont winners: American Pharoah, Justify and Point Given, who won the race by 12 1/2 lengths successful 2001. With 6-1 likelihood successful the greeting line, Rodriguez volition beryllium nether Mike Smith, who's looking for his 4th Belmont win.

Hill Road, who was fixed 10-1 morning-line likelihood for the Belmont, won the Peter Pan Stakes astatine Aqueduct past period and finished 3rd successful the Tampa Bay Derby successful March and successful November's Breeders' Cup Juvenile successful California.

Irad Ortiz Jr. volition beryllium aboard the bay colt successful pursuit of his 3rd Belmont win, astir precocious riding Mo Donegal to triumph successful 2022. Hill Road volition beryllium trainer Chad Brown's 5th vocation introduction successful the race. He's inactive seeking his archetypal Belmont triumph aft coming adjacent with third-place Sierra Leone successful 2024 and second-place Gronkowski successful 2018.

Crudo, who's co-owned by personage cook Bobby Flay, was fixed 15-1 likelihood successful the greeting line. The bay colt won the Sir Barton Stakes, 1 of the undercard races for the Preakness, and volition beryllium trainer Todd Pletcher's accidental for a 5th Belmont win. John Velazquez volition person the mount, going for his 3rd triumph astatine the race.

Pletcher's 2nd equine successful the race, Uncaged, won astatine Saratoga successful August and astatine Aqueduct successful April but came successful sixth astatine the Peter Pan. With 30-1 morning-line odds, the bay colt volition beryllium nether Luis Saez, who won the Belmont with Dornoch past twelvemonth and with Essential Quality successful 2021.

With Heart of Honor, the different equine to beryllium fixed 30-1 likelihood successful the greeting line, Saffie Osborne has a accidental to go the archetypal pistillate to thrust to triumph successful a Triple Crown contention since Julie Krone won the Belmont successful 1993 aboard Colonial Affair. In summation to finishing 5th astatine the Preakness, the British-bred brownish colt raced successful the United Arab Emirates, coming successful 2nd astatine the UAE Derby successful April.

• Horse Racing
• Belmont Stakes
• New York