up

137th Preakness Stakes at Pimlico

Dave Bond, OTB Writer

Las Vegas, NV -- The 137th running of the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes comes our way this Saturday May 19th from Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. Three year olds will chase the second jewel in the Triple Crown over 1 3/16 miles on Pimlico's main track. $1 million is on the line for the entries as well as the prestige of winning one of horse racing's biggest prizes.

The smallest field of contenders since 2007 - only 11 horses - will go in race 12 on Pimlico's Saturday card with a post time of 6:18 PM EDT. Included in the field are the favorites from the Kentucky Derby, the eventual winner of that race and a host of others that appear to be peaking at just the right time. Let's take a look at all 11 entries from the Favorites on down and the past performances that brought them to this most intriguing race.

Horse Racing Rebates

Preakness Stakes Race Favorites

Bodemeister - Bob Baffert trained Bodemeister finished second as the favorite in the Kentucky Derby after running a nearly perfect race. Now he will be looking for a little redemption in the Preakness. He already owns an impressive 9 1/2 length win in the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn on April 4th and before that finished a close second in the Grade 2 San Felipe. He will be the favorite again - hopes are that he learned a thing or two at Churchill Downs!

I'll Have Another - was a surprise 15-1 winner in the Kentucky Derby but maybe we shouldn't have been all that shocked. He had been very impressive before the Derby with two straight wins - the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby on April 7th and before that the Grade 2 Robert B. Lewis Stakes on February 4th. He is not under the radar anymore but should still be very dangerous in Maryland.

Preakness Stakes Remaining Field Entries

Creative Cause - ran well in the Kentucky Derby and finished fifth by three lengths. Leading up to the Derby he had a Grade 1 and two Grade 2 victories in his career and had yet to finish worse than third in eight career starts. He was second in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby on April 7th and before that won the Grade 2 San Felipe. Creative Cause was in the mix two weeks ago and should be on Saturday as well.

Preakness Stakes betting at Pimlico with OffTrackBetting.com

Went The Day Well - came into the Derby having won two straight races - the Grade 3 Vinery Stakes on March 24th in impressive fashion and before that an Maiden Special Weight race at Gulfstream on March 3rd. He finished fourth by 2 1/2 lengths in the Derby and represented himself very well. Went the Day Well is suddenly a very intriguing prospect heading into the Preakness.

Daddy Nose Best - finished 10th by 11 ½ lengths in the Kentucky Derby and really wasn't a factor. He recently won the Grade 3 Sunland Derby on the heels of a very impressive win at the Grade 3 El Camino Real Derby at Golden Gate on February 18th but looked out of his element against the best in the land.

Teeth of the Dog - most recently finished a decent third in the Grade 1 Wood Memorial Stakes at Aqueduct on April 7th after racing and placing in a trio of Maiden Special Weight races at Santa Anita.

Zetterholm - rides a three race win streak into the Preakness - all at Aqueduct with the last being the Patsyprospect Stakes on April 6th. The Preakness will be his graded stakes debut.

Optimizer - has a second and two ninth place finishes in his last three starts and is the long shot in this race! He was 42-1 in the Kentucky Derby and finished 11th - decent I guess!

Cozzetti - has three starts in 2012 with just one third place finish to show for it in the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby. He has raced two Grade 1 races in the past - an eighth in the CashCall Futurity in December and the Arkansas Derby last time out on April 14th. Cozzetti is certainly a long shot for trainer Dale Romans.

Pretension - already has five starts this year with two wins and a second place finish. Last time out Pretension won the Canonero II Stakes on this track but before that was a rough ninth in the Grade 3 Illinois Derby on April 7th and fifth at the Grade 3 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct on March 3rd. Pretension has never placed in a graded stakes race.

Tiger Walk - finished a respectable fourth in the Grade 1 Wood Memorial last time out on April 7th after a fourth in the Grade 3 Gotham Stakes on March 3rd. He did place in his only other graded stakes action - the Grade 3 Withers Stakes at on February 4th.


137th Preakness Stakes Entries

Race 12 on Pimlico's Saturday card with a Post Time of 6:18 PM.

Post Horse Jockey Trainer ML Odds
1 Tiger Walk K. Desormeaux I. Correas, IV
30-1
2 Teeth of the Dog J. Bravo M. Matz
15-1
3 Pretension J. Santiago C. Grove
30-1
4 Zetterholm J. Alvarado R. Dutrow, Jr.
20-1
5 Went the Day Well J. Velazquez H. Motion
6-1
6 Creative Cause J. Rosario M. Harrington
6-1
7 Bodemeister M. Smith B. Baffert
8-5
8 Daddy Nose Best J. Leparoux S. Asmussen
12-1
9 I'll Have Another M. Gutierrez D. O'Neill
5-2
10 Optimizer C. Nakatani D. Lukas
30-1
11 Cozzetti J. Lezcano D. Romans
30-1

Live Racing Schedule

Race Tracks Time (EST)