Belmont Stakes 2023 odds, best expert picks, post positions: Forte, Tapit Trice, Angel of Empire predictions

No horse will run in all three legs of the Triple Crown this year, but the 2023 Belmont Stakes has horses from the first two races. Three horses from the Kentucky Derby and a pair of horses from the Preakness are slated to be part of the 2023 Belmont Stakes field on Saturday at Belmont Park. One of the newcomers in the 2023 Belmont Stakes lineup, Tapit Shoes is a 20-1 longshot in the latest 2023 Belmont Stakes odds. That comes despite the horse drawing the No. 1 post in Tuesday's 2023 Belmont Stakes post position draw, which has produced the most winners in history (23). Forte is the 5-2 Belmont Stakes favorite, followed by Tapit Trice (3-1), a half-brother to Tapit Shoes (20-1).

The 2023 Belmont Stakes post time is 7:02 p.m. ET. Before making any 2023 Belmont Stakes predictions, you'll want to see elite horse racing handicapper Jody Demling's 2023 Belmont Stakes picks and analysis.

A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling nailed the winner, trifecta and superfecta in the 2023 Preakness Stakes. Demling also enters the Belmont Stakes 2023 having nailed the winner of the final Triple Crown race four of the last five years, including an exacta in 2022 with Mo Donegal and Nest. He also called Flightline's win at the Breeders' Cup Classic last November.

Additionally, he has hit 10 of the last 15 Derby-Oaks doubles at Churchill Downs. That means he held a ticket with the winners of both races all but five times in the last 15 tries. Anybody following him in those races saw huge returns.

Now, with the Belmont Stakes 2023 approaching, Demling is sharing his picks and predictions over at SportsLine. .

2023 Belmont Stakes predictions for Tapit Trice, Angel of Empire, Forte

One surprise: Demling is fading Tapit Trice, even though he's one of the top favorites at 3-1. He has the second-lowest odds to win the 2023 Belmont Stakes despite finishing a career-worst seventh in the Kentucky Derby in his most recent start. Bettors clearly believe that result is a one-off despite an extremely competitive field. The chestnut colt won four straight races, including the Blue Grass Stakes, before the Kentucky Derby. He will run from the No. 2 post position on Saturday.

Tapit Trice seemingly has the tools in place to be a strong horse in the Belmont Stakes 2023. He is trained by the well-respected Todd Pletcher and Tapit Trice is the son of Tapit, who has produced four previous Belmont Stakes winners. However, his pedigree has driven his price down too much to find value at 3-1 odds. At 3-1 odds, the risks may outweigh the rewards in backing Tapit Trice to win the 2023 Belmont Stakes. See who else to back here.

Demling has also locked in his 2023 Belmont Stakes picks for Angel of Empire, who finished third in the Kentucky Derby. After Forte was scratched the morning of the first leg of the Triple Crown, Angel of Empire went off as the favorite at Churchill Downs. While he was coming on strong down the stretch, he ran out of space and finished 1 1/2 lengths behind Mage.

The added 2023 Belmont Stakes distance should work in his favor given that run at the Kentucky Derby and sire Classic Empire had a strong second-place finish at 1 3/16 miles in the 2017 Preakness Stakes. However, where Angel of Empire is positioned by Flavien Prat will be key. Deep closers haven't had much success in the Belmont Stakes, with 14 of the last 16 winners sitting within 4 1/2 lengths of the lead at the half-mile post. See Demling's prediction for Angel of Empire here.

National Treasure (5-1) was deemed to be behind his stablemates as a two-year-old, but trainer Bob Baffert wasn't worried. Last fall, Baffert said National Treasure would be a "really nice horse" by the spring, and he was spot on. National Treasure upset Kentucky Derby favorite Mage by winning the Preakness Stakes by a head.

With Red Route One as the only other Preakness horse in the 2023 Belmont Stakes field, that means just one other Belmont horse has attempted a race longer than 1 1/8 miles. That could be an advantage for National Treasure, who has proven he can sustain longer than 1 1/8 miles while nearly all others have not. See Demling's prediction for National Treasure here.

Forte, who entered the Triple Crown season with perhaps more fanfare than any other horse, will return at the Belmont Stakes 2023. He was the morning-line favorite at the Kentucky Derby before he was scratched on race day to a hoof injury. That injury placed him on a 14-day veterinary restriction list that also kept him out of the Preakness Stakes.

He's the 5-2 favorite and he was assigned stall No. 6 during Tuesday's 2023 Belmont Stakes post draw. His five-race winning streak is the reason for his status as the favorite, but now he'll have to prove that the injury didn't disrupt his training or overall speed. He hasn't raced since his win at the Florida Derby on April 1, so rust could be a factor as Forte tries to salvage what looked to be an elite 3-year-old campaign. See Demling's prediction for Forte here.

How to make 2023 Belmont Stakes picks, bets

Demling is also high on a double-digit longshot who has "looked sharp in his return to the track." Anyone who backs this horse could hit it big. Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected leaderboard, over at SportsLine.