A 12-horse field will run the Preakness Stakes this weekend with Kentucky Derby champion Super Saver the favorite to win the second jewel of the Triple Crown. The Preakness was expected to have at least 13 horses in the field, but that number was dropped to 12 after a leg injury forced Hurricane Ike to pull out.
From the remaining 12 horses five also ran in the Derby, including Sportsbook Super Saver and Derby favorite Lookin at Lucky. Super Saver was a 12/1 underdog when he raced through the muck at Churchill Downs and won the Derby. He was ridden by now three-time Derby Sportsbook Calvin Borel, who’ll also be looking for back-to-back Preakness wins.
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Borel rode Rachel Alexandra to victory at Pimlico Race Course last season and if he does repeat he would be the first jockey to do so since Pat Day won three straight Preakness races from 1994-96. After drawing a favorable post position at No. 8, Super Saver began Thursday as a 5/2 race favorite. The biggest challengers to Super Saver’s race for another win appear to be Lookin at Lucky and Paddy O’Prado.
Lookin at Lucky was the favorite in the Derby, but after drawing a poor position at No. 1 and coming out of the gate slowly he posted a disappointing sixth place finish. He’s listed as a 7/2 underdog in the Preakness at Sportsbook and if he is victorious this weekend he would become the first Derby favorite to win the Preakness since 2001 when Point Given won.
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Paddy O’Prado finished a respectable third in the Derby and could give Super Saver a run for his money this weekend coming out of the No. 10 post. Paddy O’Prado also finished second earlier this season in the Blue Grass Stakes and after showing some solid speed and pacing at the Derby he could be peaking at just the right time to upset Super Saver.
The other horses that also raced in the Derby that are entered in the Preakness are Dublin and Jackson Bend. Dublin finished seventh in the Derby and is listed at 10/1 in the Preakness despite drawing one of the worst post positions on the outside at No. 12. Jackson Bend finished well back in the Derby in 12th place and is a heavy underdog in the Preakness at 12/1.
If you’re looking for a value bet in the Preakness you may want to go with Northern Giant. He’s considered a longshot at 35/1 after some bad luck in his previous starts. Trained by D. Wayne Lukas (who has trained five Preakness Sportsbooks) Northern Giant has posted some poor results in his races due to some bad luck and bad positioning. If it all finally comes together for the long runner on Saturday he would pay off huge.
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