Belmont Stakes 2017: Who We Think Will Win, Place and Show
The horses for the 149th running of the Belmont Stakes are listed in order of post position.
NBC has the broadcast, beginning at 5. NBC Sports Network coverage runs beforehand from 3 to 5, and coverage will be streamed on NBC Sport Live.
Joe Drape's picks for Belmont Stakes 2017 are Tapwrit, Senior Investment and Meantime.
Melissa Hoppert's picks for Belmont Stakes are Irish War Cry, Tapwrit and Patch.
Twisted Tom is the favorite to win the Belmont Stakes. He has a good pedigree and is trained by Chad Brown. His jockey is Javier Castellano.
Tapwrit is a 2nd choice for the Belmont Stakes. His trainer is Todd Pletcher and his jockey is Jose Ortiz.
Gormley is the only Grade 1 winner in the field. He finished ninth in Kentucky Derby.
Drape has named his Ohio Derby winner. J Boys Echo finished 15th. Robby Albarado rode him in the Derby.
Dallas Stewart trains Hollywood Handsome and Florent Geroux rides him. Hoppert won an allowance race at Churchill Downs.
Lee finished second in the Derby and fourth in Preakness. He has run in previous two legs of the Triple Crown.
7. Irish War Cry is a horse that finished 10th in the Kentucky Derby. His trainer is Graham Motion and his jockey is Rajiv Maragh.
Ken McPeek is the trainer of the race. The jockey is Channing Hill. Hoppert thinks the horse that won the Lexington Stakes and finished third in the Preakness is too slow for the Belmont Stake.
Mike Smith's colt has shown high speed on this track. Hoppert thinks the second-place finisher in the Peter Pan at Belmont Park will go straight to the lead in this year's Belmonstakes.
Drape likes Multiplier, who won the Illinois Derby in April. Hoppert thinks the Preakness winner is lightly raced and not enough to be a factor in a race like this.
11. Epicharis has been scratched. Hoppert was treated for lameness on Wednesday. The winner of the U.A.E. Derby is the second choice.
Hoppert's horse Patch finished 14th in the Derby after breaking from Post 20. He again drew the far outside post, No. 12, for the Belmont. His sire, Union Rags, won the race in 2012.
