Triple Crown horse racing betting explained (why only 13 horses have ever swept all three)
Last updated: 2026-07-30 · Written by Priya Nair
The Triple Crown is a series of three races for three-year-old thoroughbreds — the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes — run in that order on a fixed schedule every year. Sweeping all three has happened just 13 times since the series was formalized, and the reason isn't luck: each race genuinely tests something different, on a schedule brutal enough that few horses are built to handle all three.
The schedule, and why it's so unforgiving
The Kentucky Derby runs the first Saturday in May, the Preakness Stakes follows exactly two weeks later, and the Belmont Stakes closes the series three weeks after that — five weeks total for a three-year-old horse to peak three separate times at an elite level. That compressed timeline alone rules out most horses capable of winning any single one of these races; recovering fully between elite-level efforts on that schedule is its own filter before the actual racing even starts.
Three different distances, three different tests
The Kentucky Derby runs 1¼ miles, the Preakness is the shortest at 1 3/16 miles, and the Belmont Stakes is the longest by a meaningful margin at 1½ miles. A horse built for the Derby's specific combination of class and pace doesn't automatically have what it takes for the Belmont's much longer distance — genuine stamina at 1½ miles is a different physical requirement than raw speed and class over the shorter Derby and Preakness distances, which is exactly why the Belmont is often described as the race that separates true Triple Crown winners from horses that were merely good enough to win the first two legs.
Why the rarity is structural, not just bad luck
Only 13 horses have won all three races since the Triple Crown was formalized, starting with Sir Barton in 1919. That scarcity comes from stacking three separate requirements on the same horse in the same five-week window: the class to win the Derby, the recovery to be fully sharp again for the Preakness just two weeks later, and the raw stamina to handle the Belmont's longer distance under the pressure of a Triple Crown bid on the line. A horse missing any one of those three qualities can still win one or two legs individually, which is exactly why the Triple Crown sweep is so much rarer than winning any single leg.
How this shapes the futures market
A Triple Crown futures bet, placed before any of the three races run, has to price in all three individual wins compounding together rather than just one race's outcome, similar in structure to outright and futures betting explained for other multi-stage tournaments. Even a genuinely talented three-year-old that wins the Derby convincingly still faces real uncertainty at the Preakness and Belmont specifically because of the schedule and distance factors above, not just general racing variance — which is why sportsbooks price Triple Crown futures with real caution even after a strong Derby win, rather than treating the Derby winner as a near-lock for the full sweep.
FAQ
- What are the three Triple Crown races, and when are they run? The Kentucky Derby (first Saturday in May), the Preakness Stakes (two weeks later) and the Belmont Stakes (three weeks after that) — five weeks total for a three-year-old horse to win all three.
- How many horses have won the Triple Crown? Just 13 since the series was formalized, starting with Sir Barton in 1919. The compressed five-week schedule and three different race distances make sweeping all three genuinely rare.
- Why is the Belmont Stakes considered the hardest leg? It's the longest race at 1½ miles, meaningfully further than the Derby or Preakness. Genuine stamina at that distance is a different physical demand than the speed and class needed to win the shorter first two legs.
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