Wednesday, May 15, 2019

The Preakness Stakes 2019 - The 144th Black-Eyed Susans

On Saturday, 18 May, the 144th running of the Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown races will once again be run at Pimlico Race Course, Old Hilltop, outside of Baltimore, Maryland.  This year, the Race for the Black-Eyed Susans has a post time of 6:48 EDT, and a field of 13 colts will race for a guaranteed purse of $1,650,000.00.  The race is 1 and 3/16 miles long (9.5 furlongs), and all entries will be carrying 126 pounds.  The race record was set in 1973 by Secretariat, who won the distance in 1:53 flat.
   After the Kentucky Derby controversy, Maximum Security is not running in the other Triple Crown races.  Country House, who was declared the winner, is being treated for virus and will also miss both races.  War of Will, who was shown to have run up into Maximum Security, kicking and cutting his hind legs for five strides - and finally placing a knee in the leader's testicles, causing him to run out - will be there. (See my blog from May 11, and look at the video embedded in the news story.)
   So twelve colts and one gelding are entered to run in the Preakness.  Ten were bred in Kentucky, Win Win Win and Warrior's Charge were bred in Florida, and Alwaysmining was bred in Maryland. Alwaysmining is the only gelding entered.  Eleven of the horses are bays or dark bay-browns, and there are two chestnuts - Improbable and Laughing Fox.  The thirteen entries represent twelve stallions - two are sons of Into Mischief.  And four of the colts ran in the Kentucky Derby - Improbable, who finished 4th; War of Will, who finished 7th; Win Win Win, who finished 9th; and Bodexpress, who finished 13th.*  All of the horses in the Kentucky Derby actually finished one place farther back than listed, since Maximum Security, who was the horse that was actually fouled, was moved back to 17th place. *
   Listed below are the post positions drawn by the entrants; the entry's name; the morning line betting odds;  (1) the sire; (2) the trainer; and (3) the jockey:
  1.   War of Will          4 to 1     (1) War Front     (2) Mark Casse     (3) Tyler Gaffalione
  2.   Bourbon War      12 to 1    (1) Tapit            (2) Mark Hennig   (3) Irad Ortiz Jr
  3.   Warrior's Charge   12 to 1    (1)Munnings    (2) Brad Cox      (3) Javiar Castellano
  4.   Improbable           5 to 2     (1) City Zip       (2) Bob Baffert     (3) Mike Smith
  5.   Owendale            10 to 1     (1) Into Mischief   (2) Brad Cox    (3) Florent Geroux
  6.   Market King       30 to 1     (1) Into Mischief   (2) D Wayne Lukas   (3) Jon Court
  7.   Alwaysmining      8 to 1      (1) Stay Thirsty  (2) Kelly Rubley   (3) David Centeno
  8.   Signalman           30 to 1      (1) General Quarters   (2) Kenny McPeek  (3) Brian Hernandez Jr
  9.   Bodexpress          20 to 1      (1) Bodemeister   (2) Gustavo Delgado  (3) John Velasquez
 10.  Everfast               50 to 1      (1) Take Charge Indy  (2) Dale Romans  (3) Joel Rosario
 11.  Laughing Fox      20 to 1      (1) Union Rags    (2) Steve Asmussen   (3) Ricardo Santana
 12.  Anothertwistafate   6 to 1     (1) Scat Daddy    (2) Blaine Wright   (3) Jose Ortiz
 13.  Win Win Win       15 to 1     (1) Hat Trick (JPN)  (2) Michael Trombetta   (3) Julian Pimentel



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