The 2018 Belmont Stakes will be the 150th running of this event, and history will be on the line. Justify, the winner of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, looks to become the 13th horse to win the Triple Crown, and just the second since 1978. Justify is going off at 4-5 in the latest 2018 Belmont Stakes odds, followed closely by top contenders Hofburg at 4-1 and Bravazo at 7-1. Post time is set for 6:37 p.m. ET on June 9.
Before you bet the 2018 Belmont Stakes, you'll want to hear what Jody Demling has to say.
A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling comes into the 2018 Belmont on a hot streak. Last year, he correctly picked Tapwrit, a 5-1 underdog, to upset Irish War Cry, the 5-2 favorite.
He also put Tapwrit on top of his exotics and hit the superfecta, which paid out almost $4,500 on a $2 bet.
Demling is at his best in the biggest horse races in the world. He has hit 10 straight Oaks-Derby doubles at Churchill Downs. That means he held a ticket with the winners of both races 10 straight years.
Demling followed up last year's Kentucky Derby win by successfully calling Cloud Computing as one of his long shots with a chance to win the Preakness. Sure enough, Cloud Computer galloped to victory as a 13-1 long shot last year. Then, he hit the 1-2 finish at Belmont Park.
After hitting the Travers Stakes winner and top two finishers in the Pegasus World Cup, Demling called Noble Indy winning the Louisiana Derby over favorite My Boy Jack. He also nailed the top two finishers at the Arkansas Derby and predicted the 1-2 finish of the Man O' War Stakes at Belmont. And at the Preakness, he backed Justify despite a heel injury and off-track.
With major sports books already taking action, Demling has released his early Belmont Stakes picks and listed where he believes every horse will finish.
Demling knows Justify becoming the first Triple Crown winner since American Pharoah will be a tall task.
"Justify will not only have to master the 1 1/2-mile test of champions, but he will also have to deal with what looks like a much bigger field than the Preakness," Demling told SportsLine. "Justify has only run five races in his career, but he'll be tested by other horses in the Belmont Stakes lineup who are fresh. Also, the more horses in the gate, the tougher it will be for him because of potential traffic problems and a faster pace on the front end."
We can also tell you Demling is predicting a strong run for Hofburg, a contender going off at 4-1 in the updated 2018 Belmont Stakes odds.
"The time off has been good for him and he's a horse that is getting better and stronger," Demling told SportsLine.
Hofburg was a disappointment at the Kentucky Derby, finishing seventh even though he was one of the Vegas favorites. But now rested after skipping the Preakness, he has a great chance to return to the strong form he showed at the Florida Derby, where he finished second. He's a horse you can back with confidence for this event.
Demling is especially high on a long shot that would net any backer a colossal windfall. Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected leaderboard, over at SportsLine.
What are Jody Demling's Belmont Stakes picks? And what long shot should you jump on? Check out the latest Belmont Stakes odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Demling's picks for the Belmont.
Justify 4-5
Hofburg 4-1
Bravazo 7-1
Vino Rosso 8-1
Tenfold 10-1
Blended Citizen 14-1
Gronkowski 25-1
Noble Indy 33-1
Free Drop Billy 50-1
Hofburg 4-1
Bravazo 7-1
Vino Rosso 8-1
Tenfold 10-1
Blended Citizen 14-1
Gronkowski 25-1
Noble Indy 33-1
Free Drop Billy 50-1
Comments