Angel of Empire, not Forte, Best Bet for the Belmont Stakes

• The two best bets for the 2023 Belmont Stakes are Angel of Empire with +350 odds and Forte with +200 odds based on past winners' history at the Triple Crown event annually held at Belmont Park.
• Angel of Empire is a better bet than Forte to win the Belmont Stakes because of the lack of questions surrounding the Brad Cox-trained horse and history in strong fields.

BELMONT, N.Y. – When the gates open at the Belmont Stakes on Saturday much of the attention will be focused on betting favorite Forte with +200 odds. But, it is Angel of Empire ridden by Flavien Prat and trained by Brad Cox that is the best bet with +350 odds at Bovada.

2023 Belmont Stakes Odds

• 1. Tapit Shoes +2500
• 2. Tapit Trice +400
• 3. Arcangelo +800
• 4. National Treasure +600
• 5. Il Miracolo +5000
• 6. Forte +200
• 7. Hit Show +1000
• 8. Angel Of Empire +350
• 9. Red Route One +1600

Betting on Angel of Empire to Win the 2023 Belmont Stakes

Taking Angel of Empire with +350 odds for the 2023 Belmont Stakes at USA online horse betting sites is a smart wager that is backed by both the history of past Belmont Stakes winners and Angel of Empire’s advantages over Forte.

From a historical sense, Angel of Empire has many of the same qualities that the past ten Belmont Stakes-winning horses had.

• Recent Finishes: The best of the best race in the Triple Crown, and because of that not every horse to win the Belmont Stakes won their previous event. In fact, only four of the last ten winners had won the race preceding the Belmont Stakes, with two of those winners being Triple Crown-winning horses Justify (2018) and American Pharoah (2015).
• Speed the Best Bet: Recent winners of the Belmont Stakes have largely shown that previous Equibase E-Speed figures are a better correlator to wins at Belmont Park than how they placed in previous races. Three of the past five winners had achieved E-Speed figures of 105 or above in their previous start. No horse in this field reached 105 or higher in their last race, with Forte (104), Angel of Empire (102), National Treasure (102), and Tapit Shoes (102) the only horses to even break 100. What Angel of Empire has over every non-Forte competitor is proof of concept. Angel of Empire backers need to only look back one race (the Arkansas Derby) to see a 106 E-Speed that matches Forte’s best ever. With two straight races over 100 and proof of concept of a speed that is worthy of a Belmont Stakes win, it then comes down to Forte and Angel of Empire.

Betting on Angel of Empire over Forte in the Belmont Stakes

Angel of Empire and Forte are the two most likely horses to win the Belmont Stakes based on their recent speed figures compared to past Test of the Champion winners.

Outside of just the better odds for Angel of Empire (+350) than Forte (+200) at USA online gambling sites, the Brad Cox-trained Angel of Empire is a better bet than Forte because the horses are trending in different directions.

Forte has been the betting favorite for both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, but failed to even reach the gate after an injury and then a failed drug test-related suspension.

Angel of Empire at least made it out of the Kentucky Derby gate and to the podium, finishing third.

That was Angel of Empire’s last race and it was in another strong field. That strong finish and no history of late disqualifications make Angel of Empire a much safer and better bet than Forte to win the 2023 Belmont Stakes with +350 odds.