2023 Triple Crown Betting - Horse Racing Odds

2023 Triple Crown Horse Racing Betting

The Triple Crown is arguably the most impressive achievement in all of sports. Horses have to eschew the typical racing schedule to win three races in the span of five weeks to claim this honor and win $5 million. That’s why there have only been 13 Triple Crown winners, and only two horses have won the Triple Crown since Affirmed claimed it in 1978.

It is arguably more difficult to win the Triple Crown now then it was back in the day as the Kentucky Derby routinely has a 20-horse field, and some owners and trainers will only enter their horses in one of the three races. These races are more international than they were in the past too, making it even more difficult to claim one of the biggest achievements in sports.

2023 Triple Crown Races

149th Kentucky Derby

Date: Saturday, May 6, 2023

Location: Churchill Downs, Louisville, KY

Race Distance: 1 1/4 miles ( 10 furlongs ), dirt track

Purse: Approximately $3 million

History was made at the Kentucky Derby as longshot Rich Strike pulled off the biggest upset in this race in over 100 years. The only horse with longer odds to win the Kentucky Derby was Donerail all the way back in 1913, and Rich Strike put underdogs like Giacomo and Super Saver in his dust in terms of modern longshots.

Rich Strike’s victory means that we are very unlikely to have a Triple Crown winner this year. He isn’t considered one of the favorites to win the Preakness Stakes, as he is probably set to return to what we have seen from him in the past. Rich Strike hadn’t finished better than third in any of his five races after winning his maiden at Churchill Downs last September, and his highest speed figure was 96 prior to his performance at the Kentucky Derby.

148th Preakness Stakes

Date: Saturday, May 20, 2023

Location: Pimlico Race Course, Baltimore, MD

Race Distance: 1 3/16 Miles

Purse: $1.5 million

The favorite to win the Preakness Stakes is Epicenter. He was the favorite entering the Kentucky Derby, and it looked like he would hold off Zandon for the win at Churchill Downs before Rich Strike came charging from the back of the pack. Epicenter might close at even money on Saturday, as his speed figures and pedigree are hard to match.

Early Voting is the second favorite and will be more rested after not taking part in the Kentucky Derby. This horse won the Withers Stakes and finished runner-up at the Wood Memorial, but this is the first time that he will run outside of Aqueduct in his career.

There is a lot of buzz surrounding a filly coming into the Preakness Stakes. Secret Oath won the Honeybee Stakes and dominated the Kentucky Oaks, and she ran well with the males at the Arkansas Derby last month. She has posted two speed figures of 100 or more in her last three races, and that will lead to some love for the filly.

Simplification is the only other horse with odds of less than 10-1 to win the Preakness Stakes. He won the Mucho Macho Man Stakes and the Fountain of Youth Stakes, and he also hit the board at the Holy Bull Stakes and Florida Derby before finishing fourth at the Kentucky Derby.

155th Belmont Stakes

Date: Saturday, June 10, 2023

Location: Belmont Park, Elmont, NY

Race Distance: 1 1/2 miles ( 12 furlongs ), dirt track

Purse: Approximately $1.5 million

This is the third jewel of the Triple Crown. The Belmont Stakes is dubbed “The Test of the Champion” as it is the longest of the three races at 1.5 miles. There are three weeks between the Preakness Stakes and this race, giving Triple Crown contenders an extra week to prepare.

Triple Crown Format

There's no such thing as a cheap way into the Triple Crown race field anymore, as ponies have to either win one of the major prep races leading into the Run for the Roses or finish in the money multiple times over the course of their two- and three-year old year seasons. Horses don't just go from maidens to Triple Crown winners, and they don't retire without accomplishing other great things as well.

Triple Crown Winners

The longest stretch in the history of horse racing without a Triple Crown was from 1978 through 2015 before American Pharoah finally broke through and got the job done in one of the best moments in horse racing over the course of the last four decades. Prior to that, Seattle Slew and Affirmed won the Triple Crown in consecutive years, the only time that has ever happened.

The Triple Crown was claimed a whopping three times in the 1930s and four times in the 1940s, and it's unlikely we'll ever see anything like that degree of dominance again. Only one jockey and two trainers have ever won the Triple Crown twice. Eddie Arcaro was the rider for both Whirlaway in 1941 and Citation in 1948. Jim Fitzsimmons trained Gallant Fox and Omaha in 1930 and 1935, while Bob Baffert was the trainer of the last two Triple Crown winners.

We would be remiss if we didn't mention the great Secretariat. Not only did the horse nicknamed "Big Red" win all three legs of the Triple Crown, but he did so in record time in each race. All three records continue to stand to this day, and his 1973 Belmont Stakes winning time of 2:24 flat with a margin of victory of 31 lengths is still one of the most impressive displays all-time in the history of sports.

Log into BookMaker Sportsbook and get the best Racebook Betting Odds, Racebook Betting Articles and information about this and all other sports betting events!