Belmont Stakes 2024 odds, picks, post draw: Mystik Dan, Seize the Grey, Sierra Leone predictions
The 2024 Belmont Stakes will take place on Saturday at Saratoga Race Course with Belmont Park undergoing renovations. Because of the change of venue, 2024 Belmont Stakes distance will drop to 1 1/4 miles instead of the traditional 1 1/2. The first two legs of the Triple Crown were thrillers, with a margin between first and third of only a neck at the Kentucky Derby and 2 1/4 lengths at the Preakness. Three of the horses involved in those finishes will be back in action, with Mystik Dan, Seize the Grey and Sierra Leone all entered into the 2024 Belmont Stakes field. Sierra Leone lost the Kentucky Derby by a nose and is the 9-5 favorite in the 2024 Belmont Stakes odds, while winner Mystik Dan is 5-1 and Preakness winner Seize the Grey is 8-1 among the 2024 Belmont Stakes horses.
The 2024 Belmont Stakes post time is 6:41 p.m. ET. Before making any 2024 Belmont Stakes predictions, you’ll want to see elite horse racing handicapper Jody Demling’s 2024 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 enters the 2024 Belmont Stakes having nailed the Derby-Oaks double 11 of the last 16 years. He also predicted the winner of the Belmont Stakes four of the last six years and called 10 of the last 20 Preakness winners, including 2023 when he hit the winner, exacta, trifecta and superfecta as well as the trifecta in 2024. Anybody following him in those races saw huge returns.
Now, with the Belmont Stakes 2024 approaching, Demling is sharing his picks and predictions over at SportsLine. Click here to see his picks for the third leg of the Triple Crown.
2024 Belmont Stakes predictions for Mystik Dan, Seize the Grey and Sierra Leone
One surprise: Demling is fading Seize the Grey, even though he’s the Preakness winner and one of the top favorites at 8-1. D. Wayne Lukas became the oldest trainer (88) to win an American Classic in history when Seize the Grey went wire-to-wire in the second leg of the Triple Crown. It was Lukas’ seventh Preakness win and he’s now a 15-time American Classic winner.
That includes four wins at the Belmont Stakes but he hasn’t been to the winner’s circle at “The Test of Champions” since 2000 and things might not set up as well for Seize the Grey against an even better field this time around. He went straight to the front and used a sluggish pace because of an off surface to reserve energy for the stretch run but now he’ll have Mystik Dan’s versatility, Sierre Leone’s closing ability and Mindframe’s (7-2) incredible speed to contend with. See who else to fade here.
Demling has also locked in his 2024 Belmont Stakes picks for Mystik Dan, who won the Kentucky Derby by a nose in an epic finish. Sired by Goldencents out of Colonel John mare Ma’am, Mystik Dan got a great trip from Brian Hernandez at Churchill Downs and then he followed that up with a strong second-place showing at Pimlico two weeks later in the mud.
Now he’ll become the first horse since War of Will (2019) to compete in all three legs of the Triple Crown during its typical five-week span (Max Player did it in 2020 but over a 12-week span because of COVID). He drew the No. 3 post and trainer Kenneth McPeek has had him training at Saratoga for weeks now. However, he’ll have much fresher horses to contend with on Saturday. See Demling’s prediction for Mystik Dan here.
Sired by the legendary Gun Runner out of Malibu Moon mare Heavenly Love, Sierra Leone returns to the Triple Crown trail after finishing second in the Kentucky Derby and bypassing the Preakness. Gun Runner was a 10-time graded stakes winner during an illustrious racing career and Sierra Leone has shown promise, with three wins and two runner-up finishes in five career starts.
That includes graded stakes wins at the Risen Star Stakes and Blue Grass Stakes. He went off as second favorite behind Fierceness at Churchill Downs and lost a photo finish in a seesaw battle between Mystik Dan and Forever Young. Seize the Grey and Mystik Dan will be clear tests for the talented three-year-old, as will Mindframe, who won both of his starts by more than seven lengths, Resilience (10-1) and Peter Pan Stakes winner Antiquarian (12-1). See Demling’s prediction for Sierra Leone here.
How to make 2024 Belmont Stakes picks, bets
Demling is also high on a double-digit longshot who has “keeps getting better and better.” 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.
Who wins the Belmont Stakes 2024? And which huge double-digit longshot is a must-back? Check out the latest 2024 Belmont Stakes odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Demling’s picks for the 2024 Belmont Stakes, all from the expert who nailed trifecta at the Preakness and called four of the last six Belmont winners.
