They don’t even bother with calling it the 154th running of the Belmont Stakes. It’s just Belmont 154. The oldest of the three Triple Crown races (sorry Churchill Downs) gets to the gate at 6:44 p.m. on Saturday on NBC.
There will be no Triple Crown in 2022. In fact, the eight-horse field in the Belmont only includes the Kentucky Derby winner, Rich Strike. The winner of the Preakness, Early Voting, is not in New York.
At a mile-and-a-half, they call the Belmont the Test of a Champion. It’s one of the longest horse races in the world. That distance and its place as the final race of the Triple Crown means it has been the scene for some of the biggest surprises in the world of horse racing.
Here are some of the biggest surprises at the Belmont Stakes.
In case you didn’t know, Kentucky does offer legal online horse betting. If you’d like to put action down on the Belmont Stakes the easiest option is with TVG. It’s a betting app that’s special for horse betting.
No 1. 2014 – Dulled chrome
Understand that in 2014, we hadn’t seen a Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978. The sports world was hungry to see one.
Enter California Chrome. With a delightful backstory, the California-bred horse won at Santa Anita, then triumphed at the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. Everyone was sure this was going to be the end of the drought.
California Chrome inspired an army of fans “Chromies,” and was the 8-5 favorite. The distance did him in (this is a common theme).
California Chrome stayed near the leaders for much of the race, but after the far turn, he was out of gas.
Tonalist, who had won the Peter Pan Stakes four weeks prior, and didn’t run in either of the other two Triple Crown races, won a photo finish.
No 2. 1987 – The twice is right
It was supposed to be a storybook ending. Alysheba, the son of the great Alydar, who finished second in all three Triple Crown races in 1987, showed speed and power in winning the Derby and Preakness, edging Bet Twice, uh, twice.
Alysheba went off at Belmont Park at 4-5. Bet Twice was listed as 9-1 and the t-shirts at Belmont Park read “Bet Twice a Third Time.”
Alysheba and Bet Twice were on a good pace early near the leaders. Bet Twice made a huge move on the backstretch, and Alysheba was unable to respond. Alysheba rose to third place but then faded.
Bet Twice won by a whopping 14 lengths. The Alydar Curse lived on.
No 3. 2008 – Take me back to Da’Tara
When it comes to longshots winning the Belmont, Da’Tara is Da One. Big Brown was the next big thing in horse racing and looked set to win the Triple Crown. Da’Tara was the longest shot on the board at 38-1 and had never shown anything against serious competition.
But Big Brown broke from the gate strangely, and immediately crashed into another horse. He steadied himself and was third after a half-mile. Da’Tara took an early lead and the crowd waited for someone to chase him down. It never happened.
Big Brown was eased up at the top of the stretch and failed to finish. Da’Tara’s win was one of the biggest shockers in horse racing history.
No 4. 2002 – The one shining Sarava
War Emblem had the pedigree and training of Bob Baffert entering the 2002 Belmont Stakes. Sarava had started his career in Europe. He had won the Sir Barton Stakes at Pimlico on the Preakness undercard. He was a total afterthought in the field of 11.
War Emblem had a rough start, but battled through the field and takes the lead with five furlongs to go, but that was the high water mark in this war. Sarava had tracked War Emblem the whole way, passed him when he faded, and nipped Medaglia d’Oro by a nose at the wire.
At 70-1, he’s the biggest longshot to win the Belmont.
No 5. 1979 – A spectacular defeat
In 1979, the Triple Crown was actually, um, boring? It had happened three times in six years. Spectacular Bid had drawn comparisons to Secretariat after winning the Derby and Preakness, but he had one fatal flaw: Jockey Ron Franklin.
The troubled man kicked a horse at Pimlico after losing a race and fought with another jockey at Belmont Park a few days before the Belmont Stakes.
The legend is that Spectacular Bid didn’t want to just win the Belmont, his trainers (and jockey) wanted to crush the field and win by 31 lengths, just like Secretariat. You just don’t do that.
Spectacular Bid made a huge move midway through the race and leads by three lengths on the far turn, but remember, the Belmont is long. He is spent at the top of the stretch and Coastal, who was a 4-1 shot, surges past for the win.
Spectacular Bid would win 12 of his next 13 races but didn’t win the Triple Crown. Franklin was later busted on cocaine charges.
No 6. 1958 – The heart of the Tim Tam
Tim Tam had won six races in a row on his way to the Belmont. He had won the Derby Trial and the Kentucky Derby. He was 0.15-1 to win the Belmont. Those odds were preposterous.
Cavan had shown some desire in winning the Peter Pan Stakes and made a move heading into the far turn and blew past Tim Tam to win by six lengths.
After the race, doctors discovered Tim Tam had run with a fractured bone in his ankle. He never raced again but lived to be 27. He’s the lowest-priced favorite to lose the Belmont.