

The 2025 Belmont Stakes will be held at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday and much of the attention will be on the rematch between Sovereignty and Journalism, who have both managed to take down a leg of the Triple Crown after an epic battle in the Kentucky Derby. However, those aren’t the only two horses in the 2025 Belmont Stakes field and recent history has favored Belmont Stakes longshots, with Dornoch winning as a 15-1 underdog last year and Arcangelo winning at 8-1 in 2023. Journalism is the 8-5 favorite in the 2025 Belmont Stakes betting odds, followed by Sovereignty (2-1), Baeza (4-1), Rodriguez (6-1), Hill Road (10-1), Crudo (15-1), Uncaged (30-1) and Heart of Honor (30-1). SportsLine’s horse racing experts are breaking down the Belmont Stakes 2025 from all angles ahead of Saturday’s 7:04 p.m. ET post time.
A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Jody Demling hit the top three finishers in the Kentucky Derby in the correct order and then nailed the Preakness exacta to start this Triple Crown season. He’s also hit predicted the winner of the Belmont Stakes in four of the last seven years. Anyone who has followed those picks on sites like FanDuel Racing and TwinSpires is up huge. You can see Demling’s full projected leaderboard at SportsLine.
Here are the top Belmont Stakes longshots to target, according to Demling:
Rodriguez (6-1)
Legendary trainer Bob Baffert is a three-time Belmont Stakes winner with a total of 17 wins in Triple Crown races to his name and he’s been eager to get this horse onto the Triple Crown trail for weeks now. He qualified for the Kentucky Derby with his wire-to-wire win at the Wood Memorial but was scratched the week of the race with a minor foot injury. Then Baffert targeted a return at the Preakness but was forced to hold the horse out again while he recovered.
However, it appears Rodriguez is finally cleared to run and he drew the No. 3 post on Monday night and is expected to go to the front with legendary jockey Mike Smith aboard. Smith is also a three-time Belmont Stakes winner, most recently teaming with Baffert to win the Triple Crown aboard Justify in 2018. He’s one of only two horses in the field with a clear preference for setting the pace and his early speed could change the complexion of Saturday’s race. He’s a live longshot and you can also boost your bankroll with this FanDuel Racing promo code.
Crudo (15-1)
Owned by celebrity chef Bobby Flay and trained by four-time Belmont Stakes winner Todd Pletcher, Crudo only began his racing career in February but he’s already generating plenty of buzz. After finishing fourth in his debut at Gulfstream Park, the son of 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify won a seven-furlong maiden race at Keeneland by 7 1/4 lengths and then produced another dominant victory on the undercard at the Preakness Stakes.
He faced some early pressure on the pace in the 2025 Spendthrift Farms Sir Barton Stakes but kicked it into high gear and pulled away for a 7 1/2-length victory. He’ll be guided by hall-of-fame jockey John Velazquez, who is a two-time Belmont Stakes winner and is the all-time leader in career earnings for the sport with nearly $500 million in winnings. Demling says Crudo has a shot to run a big race and you can also add up to $400 in bonus funds now with the latest TwinSpires promo code. You can add even more value with this TwinSpires promo code.
How to make 2025 Belmont Stakes picks, bets
Demling’s top pick is an underdog who could be “the best value in the race.” Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected 2025 Belmont Stakes leaderboard and betting tickets, over at SportsLine.
SportsLine also has Belmont Stakes 2025 picks from long-time horse racing journalist Gene Menez. You can also find horse racing predictions for Journalism and Sovereignty in a rematch that could determine horse of the year honors.
Best Belmont Stakes betting promos
Here are several places to bet on the Belmont Stakes.
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