We’re looking back over the entire history of Belmont Stakes winners, listing every winner since its inauguration in 1867. On this page, we tell you everything need to know about the people behind their success.

Full Belmont Stakes Winners List by Year

The Belmont Stakes has been taking place for over a century and a half. With the ever-growing popularity of betting on the race with top Belmont Stakes racebooks, it’s not going anywhere anytime soon.

Read on to discover each and every winner, presented in easy to digest chunks of around 20-25 years. Any Triple Crown winners are marked in bold.

20 Most Recent Winners of the Belmont Stakes

Let’s start with the most recent Belmont race winners. In 2015, American Pharoah ended a wait for a Triple Crown winner that stretched back to 1978.

The next one was much shorter, as Justify completed the Triple Crown with the Belmont in 2018. There was a new landmark set in 2023, when Jena Antonucci became the first female trainer to enjoy a win at the Belmont, with her horse Arcangelo.

Past Belmont Stakes Winners – 1984-2004

This period started with Woody Stephens continuing a superb run in the Belmont, with the trainer saddling the winner in five consecutive years from 1982 to 1986. D. Wayne Lukas was another Hall of Famer that dominated this race, with four victories during this era including three in a row in 1994, 1995 and 1996.

In 1993, Julie Krone became the first, and thus far only, female jockey to win a Triple Crown race, turning Belmont Stakes payouts on their head as she triumphed aboard Colonial Affair. Here are the Belmont winners at the start of the Breeders’ Cup era:

Belmont Winners List – 1963-1983

The Belmont Stakes was held at Aqueduct between 1963 and 1967, while Belmont Park was being renovated. Affirmed won the Triple Crown in 1978, just a year after Seattle Slew managed the feat.

Even more famous than those horses, however, was Secretariat and his triumphs in 1973, setting records for the fastest time and the biggest margin of victory at the Belmont. Look back with us over a golden age for the big race and Triple Crown in general:

Previous Belmont Stakes Winners – 1943-1962

This era saw Eddie Arcaro equal the record for the jockey that rode the most winners in the Belmont Stakes, with both he and Jim McLaughlin enjoying six victories. On one of those occasions, Arcaro partnered 1948 Triple Crown hero Citation. The legendary jockey was certainly a popular name among those learning how to bet on Belmont Stakes races around that time.

Assault (1946) and Count Fleet (1943) also followed-up on Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes victories in the Belmont in the mid-1940s. These are all the winners from then until the early 1960s:

Belmont Stakes Past Winners – 1923-1942

The Triple Crown was won regularly during this era. Whirlaway in 1941, War Admiral in 1937, Omaha in 1935 and Gallant Fox in 1930, all achieved this distinction. This timeline also saw a period of dominance begin from the Belair Stud. As far as top Belmont Stakes picks go, plenty came from the now famous barn.

Their six Belmont Stakes winners, which is a joint-record for any owners, started in 1930 and concluded in 1955. Owners find it difficult to dominate like that today. These are all the victorious Belmont Stakes horses from the interwar period:

Belmont Stakes Winners History & Move to Belmont Park – 1905-1922

Sir Barton became the first winner of the Triple Crown in 1919. This period is also notable for providing James G. Rowe Sr with four of his eight Belmont wins, which remains a record for any trainer.

The race moved to the newly opened Belmont Park in 1905. After anti-gambling legislation was passed in New York State, the track was closed for a time and the race cancelled in 1911 and 1912. These are all the Belmont Stakes results from this era:

List of Belmont Stakes Winners from Morris Park – 1890-1904

Between 1890 and 1904, the Belmont Stakes was held at Morris Park. It was a time when James R. Keene claimed two of his six wins, which make him the owner with the joint most numbers of victories in this race, alongside Belair Stud. Let’s look back over this period from Morris Park hosting the Belmont:

Earliest Winners of Belmont Stakes at Jerome Park – 1867-1889

The Belmont Stakes began its life at Jerome Park in 1867, which remained the venue for the event until 1889. Jim McLaughlin enjoyed six wins in seven years during this time, which makes him the joint most successful jockey.

Two of those wins came with James G. Rowe Sr as trainer. He earlier also won the Belmont as a jockey in 1872 and 1873. The only other person to win the race both as both a jockey and trainer was George M. Odom. This is the earliest history of the Belmont Stakes and its winners:

What Past Editions Mean for Belmont Winners Today

Looking back at past Belmont Stakes winners and payouts can give us greater insight into what we might expect in the 2024 race. Let’s take a look at the trends and statistics that could prove significant.

Belmont Stakes Winners By Post Position

The most recent winner Arcangelo came out of gate 3 in 2023. Historically, this has been one of the most successful Belmont Stakes post positions, with an inner draw producing more winners than the ones on the outside.

Gate 1 has been the most successful post position with 24 winners. Gate 3 is second with 16, Gate 5 has 15, Gate 7 has 14 and Gate 2 has 13. Given the amount of winners from low-to-middle draws surrounding it, Gate 4 has somehow underperformed with only 10 wins.

Barns & Riders to Follow

The jockey Javier Castellano won both the Belmont Stakes and the Kentucky Derby in 2023. Over the last ten years, only two jockeys have ridden more than one Belmont winner during that period.

Irad Ortiz Jr did so in 2016 and 2022, while Joel Rosario did likewise in 2014 and 2019. Over the same timeframe, Todd Pletcher (2017 and 2022) and Bob Baffert (2015 and 2018) are the only trainers to have saddled more than one Belmont winner.

Belmont Stakes Winners And Odds

Over the last ten years in the Belmont, the winner has been the favorite on four occasions. So backing the shortest price horse every year, would have seen you lose money.

Yet in seven of the ten races in this period, it was won by a horse that was amongst the top three favorites in the betting. The biggest priced winner over this ten-year timeframe was Sir Winston in 2019, at final Belmont Stakes odds of 12/1.

FAQs

Who were the winners of the Belmont Stakes?

Arcangelo was the winner of the 2023 Belmont Stakes. The horse was ridden by the jockey Javier Castellano and trained by Jena Antonucci, who became the first female trainer to guide a horse to victory in a Triple Crown race.

How much does the Belmont winner get?

The most recent winner of the Belmont Stakes was Arcangelo in 2023, receiving $900,000 in prize money. The prize purse for the 2024 Belmont Stakes has been increased from $1.5 million to $2 million, so there is a chance that the winner could receive an even greater sum.

What is the greatest margin of victory in Belmont Stakes history?

The biggest margin of victory at the Belmont Stakes came in 1973 when Secretariat won by 31 lengths. Count Fleet holds the second largest margin of victory with 25 lengths in 1943, while Man o’ War ranks third with 20 lengths in 1920.

Has a filly ever won the Belmont?

Three fillies have won the Belmont Stakes. The first was Ruthless in the first ever running of the race in 1867. Then came Tanya in 1905, before Rags to Riches became the most recent filly champion in 2007.

Who was the fastest Belmont Stakes winner ever?

Over the current length of the race, which is 1 1/2 miles, Secretariat is the fastest winner. ‘Big Red’ recorded a time of 2:24 in 1973 and holds the fastest 1/2, 3/4, 1 and 1 1/4 mile fractions in Belmont history.

Is there anything that recent winners of the Belmont have in common?

Over the last ten years of the Belmont Stakes the winner has come from the top three favorites in the betting, on seven occasions. Of the three times that a horse came to the Belmont with a chance of winning the Triple Crown, there were two occasions when they won the race.