Similar to the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes, rain could be a factor for the 2025 Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday. Post time for the final leg of the Triple Crown is at 7:04 p.m. ET. If the track is soaked by rain in the 2025 Belmont Stakes weather, this will be the first Belmont Stakes with an off track since Ruler on Ice won at Belmont Park in 2011.
Saratoga Race Course will hosts the Belmont Stakes for the second consecutive year with renovations to Belmont Park still in progress. Similarly, the 2025 Belmont Stakes length has been adjusted from a mile-and-a-half to a mile-and-a-quarter, the length of the Kentucky Derby. Last year’s race was the first time the race had been run at this distance since 1905.
Known as the “Graveyard of Champions,” upsets have become routine at Saratoga over the years. Journalism (9-5) and Sovereignty (2-1) will not only have to face off against a field of eight, but the stereotype that favorites are routinely beaten here. After all, Dornoch was 15-1 when he won this race last year at Saratoga.
Sovereignty and Journalism ran well under sloppy conditions at Churchill Downs, while Journalism’s win at Pimlico was after the rain subsided on a fast track. Which horses in the 2025 Belmont Stakes field might fare best with rainy conditions in play? In addition to Sovereignty, the eight-horse 2025 Belmont Stakes field includes only one other horse that has won on a sloppy track, Uncaged (30-1).
2025 Belmont Stakes weather forecast
Day | Skies | Temperature | Rain Chance |
Thursday | Partly Cloudy | 88 | 23% |
Friday | PM Thunderstorms | 81 | 50% |
Saturday (Belmont Stakes day) | Showers | 69 | 62% |
The team at SportsLine has taken a deep dive into the history of the 2025 Belmont horses to see which ones are bred to thrive in sloppy conditions.
You can use their advice to make picks on Belmont Stakes betting sites and get the latest FanDuel Racing promo code and TwinSpires promo code. You can also evaluate the 2025 Belmont odds to get the latest 2025 Belmont Stakes picks.
Here are three Belmont horses to target, given the potential Saratoga track conditions, to help you figure out how to bet the Belmont Stakes:
Sovereignty (2-1)
He’s only run once on an off track, winning the Kentucky Derby with a 105 Beyer Speed Figure on a sloppy track. Sovereignty held off eventual Preakness champion, Journalism, and the fast closing Baeza to win the first jewel of the Triple Crown. After skipping the Preakness Stakes to target this race, trainer Bill Mott’s horse comes in fresh looking to hold off the seven challengers in the Belmont Stakes.
An advantage that Sovereignty might have this time is not having to go as wide during the race. With so many horses in the field, he had to move out 5-6 paths off the rail to find the room to make his winning run. With less than half of the field as we saw in Louisville, Sovereignty should be able to save more ground and battle the front runners and Journalism down the stretch on Saturday. You can bet Sovereignty at FanDuel Racing now and get a no-sweat first bet up to $500:
Crudo (15-1)
The lightly raced Crudo takes on more experienced horses for the final leg of the Triple Crown. Trained by four-time Belmont Stakes winning trainer Todd Pletcher, Crudo has won two of three starts in front-running fashion. With a Tomlinson Wet Figure of 408, he is bred to run well in sloppy conditions like those expected at Saratoga on Saturday.
While his top Beyer Speed Figure is 84, more than 20 points below the top horses, if Crudo can outduel fellow speedster Rodriguez for the lead, he may be able to slow the race down int he middle and have enough stamina to contend with the closers down the Saratoga stretch. He’s a longshot for a reason due to inexperience and previous speed, but at Saratoga, stunning results are more common than at most other race tracks. You can bet Crudo now at TwinSpires and get up to $400 in bonus bets:
Uncaged (30-1)
Todd Pletcher’s second entry is the longest shot in the race but he’s the only one who has won on a wet track outside of Sovereignty among the runners in the 2025 Belmont Stakes. Uncaged is 2-for-2 on wet tracks, including a win on a muddy Saratoga track in his first career race last August. In fact, his only two wins have come on off tracks.
Uncaged enters this race off a disappointing sixth place finish in the Grade III Peter Pan Stakes last month at Aqueduct behind Hill Road (also in this race at 10-1 odds). His top Beyer Speed Figure is 84, which he set breaking his maiden last summer at this very track. But if the skies open up on Saturday and force a muddy or sloppy course, Uncaged may be the longshot to target in your exactas, trifectas, and superfectas. You can bet Uncaged at FanDuel Racing now and get a no-sweat first bet up to $500:
How to make 2025 Belmont Stakes picks, bets
SportsLine’s Jody Demling nailed the Kentucky Derby trifecta and Preakness exacta this year, as well as having picked the winner of the Belmont in 4 of the last 7 years. His pick to win might surprise some, but could be “best value” in the race. Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected 2025 Belmont leaderboard and betting tickets, over at SportsLine.
Best Belmont Stakes betting promos
Here are several places to bet on the Belmont Stakes.
