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Preakness Stakes

The Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57 kg); fillies 121 lb (55 kg). It is the second leg of the US Triple Crown, with the Kentucky Derby preceding it and the Belmont Stakes following it. The horse must win all three races to win the Triple Crown.

The Preakness Stakes has been termed "The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans" because a blanket of Black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta, the state flower of Maryland) is traditionally placed around the winner's neck. The attendance at the Preakness Stakes ranks second in North America and usually surpasses the attendance of all other stakes races including the Belmont Stakes, the Breeders' Cup and the Kentucky Oaks. The attendance of the Preakness Stakes typically only trails the Kentucky Derby.

Pimlico Race Course Graded Stakes Races

Stakes Race Grade Purse
Black-Eyed Susan Stakes II $300,000
Pimlico Special III $300,000
Preakness Stakes I $1,000,000
Dixie Stakes II $300,000
Allaire duPont Distaff Stakes III $100,000
Gallorette Handicap III $150,000
Maryland Sprint Handicap III $100,000

Live Racing Schedule

Race Tracks Time (EST)