Triple Crown betting can be an exciting time for horse racing, especially if a horse wins the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. When anyone thinks of the Triple Crown they usually think of horse racing because of its long history. Triple Crown wagering goes all the way back to 1919 when Sir Barton won all three races. Triple Crown excitement begins with the Kentucky Derby. It is the greatest horse race of the year and the one all horsemen want to win. It also begins Triple Crown wagering that continues for the next five weeks with the Preakness and the Belmont. Very few horses have actually completed the trifecta and won all three of the Triple Crown betting races. To be exact, only 11 horses have pulled off the feat, the last being Affirmed in 1978.
The most recent horse to fail in Triple Crown was Smarty Jones in 2004. He won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness but could not win the Belmont in Triple Crown betting. Many people that get involved in Triple Crown betting start with the Kentucky Derby. This is the Triple Crown wagering race where longshots have produced huge payoffs and big money is always attractive to horse bettors. The Kentucky Derby usually has a big field and that produces a lot of Triple Crown wagering excitement and oftentimes an unpredictable result.
Triple Crown on the Preakness is a step down from the Derby with not nearly as many horses in the field and no where near the payoffs. The Derby winner is almost always the favorite and this makes the Triple Crown prices much lower. Favorites do very well in the Preakness which also means lower payoffs in Triple Crown betting.
The Belmont is either a huge part of Triple Crown or the smallest. The reason it is either one or the other is because sometimes a horse is going for the Triple Crown which means the Belmont is huge in terms of interest. Other times there will be no Triple Crown on the line at the Belmont and it is just another race. The Belmont has ended the hopes of many Triple Crown betting horses throughout the years with its grueling mile and a half distance.