Road to the Breeders' Cup Picks & Best Bets for 7-6: Belmont Derby & Belmont Oaks

Endlessly is among the three-year-old turf stars taking center stage on Saturday at the Belmont at The Big A meet. Find out if Robert Criscola thinks he'll get the win in the Belmont Derby, and don't miss our Belmont Oaks picks.

Robert Criscola - Contributor at Covers.com
Robert Criscola • Publishing Editor
Jul 5, 2024 • 14:18 ET • 4 min read
Endlessly horse racing
Photo By - USA TODAY Sports

Three-year-old grass runners with Breeders' Cup odds aspirations will help end the Belmont at The Big A meeting with a bang in Saturday's Grade I Belmont Derby and Grade I Belmont Oaks.

Don't miss my free betting picks for both turf tests on Saturday, July 6.

Belmont Derby odds, prediction and best bet

  • Race: Belmont at The Big A Race 6
  • Post time: 3:08 p.m. ET
  • TV: FS2
Post Horse Track odds bet365
1 Legend of Time 5-2 +175
2 White Palomino 5-1 +650
3 Royal Majesty 6-1 +1,000
4 Trikari 7-2 +500
5 Endlessly 6-5 +187

Odds as of 7-5-2024.

No. 1 Legend of Time (5-2) bounced back impressively from a dull effort in the Grade II American Turf two-back when he went from last to first to win the Grade II Pennine Ridge over this course. The victory came despite No. 2 White Palomino (5-1) having things all his own way up front, but he ultimately couldn't hang on.

William Buick, the No. 1 pilot for Charlie Appleby and Godolphin racing, sees fit to ship in from overseas for the call on Legend of Time in this $750,000 event. 

No. 5 Endlessly (6-5, morning-line favorite) might get a little overbet based on name recognition after an ill-advised dirt try in the Kentucky Derby. The speed figures say that synthetic is his preferred surface after winning the Grade III Jeff Ruby Steaks two-back, but his juvenile form on grass (3-for-4) is nothing to sneeze at. 

Endlessly is a win threat with Umberto Rispoli making the cross-country trek for Michael McCarthy, but at this price, Legend of Time appeals more.

White Palomino should not be tossed from the exacta discussion as he makes just his fourth career start. The added 1/16th of a mile would imply that he'll have an even harder time going gate-to-wire here (assuming he gets the lead over Trikari, which he might not), but he did break his maiden over 1 3/16th-miles at Keeneland two-back. You couldn't ask for better turf connections on this side of the Atlantic in Flavien Prat and Chad Brown.

Best bet: $12 exacta 1/5, $3 exacta 5/1, $3 exacta 1/2, $2 exacta 5/2 ($20)

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Belmont Oaks odds, prediction and best bet

  • Race: Belmont at The Big A Race 9
  • Post time: 4:42 p.m. ET
  • TV: FS2
Post Horse Track odds bet365
1 Pin Up Betty 10-1 +1,000
2 Dynamic Pricing 5-1 +500
3 Fun With Flags 10-1 +1,400
4 Buchu 10-1 +800
5 Secret Satire 8-1 +700
6 Segesta 6-1 +500
7 She Feels Pretty 2-1 +350
8 Cinderella's Dream 9-2 +450
9 Sy B 15-1 +2,000

Odds as of 7-5-2024.

I'm going to side with a couple of fillies that I think might get lost in the wagering shuffle in a wide-open renewal of the Belmont Oaks in No. 5 Secret Satire (8-1) and No. 3 Fun With Flags (10-1).

Secret Satire lures Frankie Dettori off an ugly-looking 10th in the Epsom Oaks, one of England's most prestigious turf races for three-year-olds. She cuts back and gets effective class relief as she looks for a repeat of her Grade III victory at York two-back going 1 5/16th-miles.

Fun With Flags won her first three starts before settling for second in her first try vs. group runners in France. The firmer ground on this side of the pond could aid her cause under Manny Franco.

Best bet: $4 exacta box 3/5, $6 win 3,5 ($20)

Not intended for use in MA.
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Road to the Breeders’ Cup Classic

Race Date Track Result
Kentucky Derby May 4 Churchill Downs Mystik Dan
Preakness Stakes May 18 Pimlico Seize the Grey
Belmont Stakes June 8 Saratoga Dornoch
Metropolitan Handicap June 8 Saratoga National Treasure
Stephen Foster Stakes* June 29 Churchill Downs Kingsbarns
Haskell Stakes* July 20 Monmouth Park TBD
Whitney Stakes* August 3 Saratoga TBD
Juddmonte International Stakes (turf)* August 21 York (UK) TBD
Travers Stakes August 24 Saratoga TBD
Pacific Classic* August 31 Del Mar TBD
Jockey Club Gold Cup* September 1 Saratoga TBD
Pennsylvania Derby September 21 Parx TBD
California Crown* September 28 Santa Anita Park TBD
Lukas Classic September 28 Churchill Downs TBD

*denotes "Win & You're In" race for Breeders' Cup Classic.

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Robert Criscola - Covers.com
Publishing Editor

Robert M. Criscola’s road to becoming a Covers publishing editor began with an internship at Metro New York, which eventually turned into a freelance job at MetroBet covering many sports from a wagering angle, including horse racing. He continued to focus on “The Sport of Kings” by writing for shapperdacapper.com, danonymousracing.com, and informer.fanxt.com before joining the team at the TwinSpires Edge in 2019 as a regular contributor and weekend editor. “Crisco” began writing game previews for Covers in 2022 and joined the editing team in 2023.

His best advice for sports bettors? Bet with your head, not over it.

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