2025 Belmont Stakes: Horse-by-horse preview of the Triple Crown race

It’s back to Saratoga for at least one more Belmont Stakes. There are eight horses in this year’s field, down from 10 a year ago, and the distance is again a little shorter.

Journalism, who had a solid workout on Sunday, looks to add one more notch in his candidacy for horse of the year. He won the Preakness and finished second to Sovereignty in the Kentucky Derby.

“It’s cooler up here,” trainer Mike McCarthy said, referring to Sarasota Springs, N.Y. “He seems like he’s enjoying himself. Sometimes, with these good horses, you don’t really find out until race day and the running starts.”

Will the duel between Journalism and his rival materialize? As McCarthy said, we’ll find out on Saturday.

Total: $2 million. First place: $1.2 million. Second place: $360,000. Third place: $200,000. Fourth place: $100,000. Fifth place: $60,000. Sixth place: $40,000. Seventh place: $20,000. Eighth place: $20,000.

Other notable races: Kentucky Derby (winner: Sovereignty), Preakness Stakes (Journalism), Haskell Stakes (July 19), Travers Stakes (Aug. 23), Breeders’ Cup (Oct. 31-Nov. 1).

Opening odds

Trainer: Chad Brown

Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.

Career earnings: $336,496

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 2-1-0-1

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 5-2-0-2

Last three: Peter Pan Stakes (1st), Tampa Bay Derby (3rd), Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (3rd).

Notable: Ortiz has been the winningest jockey at Saratoga the last three seasons (2022-24) and six times in the last 10 years. Similarly, Brown has been the leading trainer seven times in the last nine years.

Trainer: Bill Mott

Jockey: Junior Alvarado

Career earnings: $3,672,800

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 3-2-1-0

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 6-3-2-0

Last three: Kentucky Derby (1st), Florida Derby (2nd), Fountain of Youth Stakes (1st)

Notable: His legacy, with a win here, would be his handlers’ decision to sit out the Preakness and decline the chance at the Triple Crown. Such is the dilemma with three high-stress races in five weeks.

Trainer: Bob Baffert

Jockey: Mike Smith

Career earnings: $522,800

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 4-2-1-1

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 5-2-1-1

Last three: Wood Memorial (1st), San Felipe (3rd), Robert Lewis Stakes (2nd)

Notable: Was a late scratch from the Kentucky Derby with a crack in his hoof, so his most recent race was in the Wood Memorial on April 5. He’s the only horse in the field who didn’t run in May.

Trainer: Todd Pletcher

Jockey: Luis Saez

Career earnings: $105,450

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 3-1-0-0

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 4-2-0-0

Last three: Peter Pan Stakes (6th), Allowance/Aqueduct (1st), Allowance/Gulfstream (4th)

Notable: Broke his maiden at Saratoga last August, his only race as a yearling. Saez won last year’s Belmont aboard Dornoch (17-1) and in 2021 with favorite Essential Quality (6-5).

Trainer: Todd Pletcher

Jockey: John Velazquez

Career earnings: $130,148

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 3-2-0-0

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 3-2-0-0

Last three: Sir Barton Stakes (1st), Maiden/Keeneland (1st), Maiden/Gulfstream (4th).

Notable: Pletcher didn’t commit until this past weekend to running Crudo in the Belmont. Celebrity chef Bobby Flay is among those in the ownership group.

Trainer: John Shirreffs

Jockey: Flavien Prat

Career earnings: $648,500

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 4-1-2-1

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 5-1-2-1

Last three: Kentucky Derby (3rd), Santa Anita Derby (2nd), Maiden/Santa Anita (1st).

Notable: Was a late entrant to the Kentucky Derby and ran out of the No. 19 post. Did well to finish third. Two of the last three Belmont winners — Dornoch in 2024, Mo Donegal in 2022 — came from the No. 6 post.

» READ MORE: Horse racing gives Jayson Werth those competitive juices he misses from his Phillies years

Trainer: Mike McCarthy

Jockey: Umberto Rispoli

Career earnings: $2,838,880

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 4-3-1-0

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 7-5-1-1

Last three: Preakness Stakes (1st), Kentucky Derby (2nd), Santa Anita Derby (1st).

Notable: The only horse here who’s run in the first two jewels of the Triple Crown. In the last eight Belmonts, the favored horse has four wins, three second-place finishes, and a third.

Trainer: Jamie Osborne

Jockey: Saffie Osborne

Career earnings: $400,919

2025 starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 5-1-3-0

Career starts-1st-2nd-3rd: 7-2-4-0

Last three: Preakness Stakes (5th), UAE Derby (2nd), Al Bastakiya (2nd).

Notable: Finished nine lengths back of Journalism last time out. Osborne will be the third woman jockey to compete in the Belmont following Julie Krone (1991-96) and Rosie Napravik (2012-14).

Ed Barkowitz, sportswriter: 3-Rodriguez, 7-Journalism, 2-Sovereignty, 1-Hill Road

The long layoff for Rodriguez is a concern, but three-time Belmont winner Mike Smith had him in top form winning the Wood Memorial on April 5. Journalism and Sovereignty have the best resumés in the field and a duel over the last quarter-mile would be a treat after Sovereignty’s win over Journalism at the Kentucky Derby. Rounding out the superfecta with Hill Road simply because of the expertise of trainer Chad Brown and jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. at this track.

Kerith Gabriel, editor: 7- Journalism; 3- Rodriguez; 8- Heart of Honor; 6- Baeza

I haven’t let up with Journalism in the last two races, and I’m not about to give up on him now. Why? He’s due to replicate his finish at the Preakness following that close call at the Kentucky Derby. Rodriguez has been consistent, and for the last major race of the season, there’s precedent to believe that trainer Bob Baffert wants to make a name on national television. Heart of Honor is for no other reason than I like long shots, and 30-1 odds for a horse that has finished in the top three in its last two races is a horse I’m adding to my field. Baeza? I like the name.

Luke Reasoner, sports/news designer: 7- Journalism; 2-Sovereignty; 5-Crudo; 4-Uncaged

Sovereignty or Journalism — that is the question. Therefore, I did what any seasoned writer would do: I flipped a coin — quarter. It landed on tails, which means Journalism gets the nod for the win, and Sovereignty comes in second.

After nailing three of the top four in the Preakness (not bragging at all), there’s absolutely no reason to change my strategy that worked — even if I have to pick a horse or two with the vaguest ties to Ocala, Fla., a.k.a. “Horse Capital of the World.”

Thus, I’m rounding out my top four with a pair of Todd Pletcher-trained horses — Crudo and Uncaged — whose Ocala connection comes courtesy of Pletcher’s father, who runs the Payton Training Center there.