The Preakness Stakes has reclaimed its traditional mid-May spot, a year after being postponed to October because of the coronavirus pandemic. The horse race will once again be the second leg of the Triple Crown.
Medina Spirit will start the 146th running of the so-called Run for the Black-Eyed Susans takes place as favorite on Saturday at the of a week in which he has made the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The three-year-old won the Kentucky Derby on May 1, but his triumph could be short-lived after he tested positive for an excessive amount of the steroid betamethasone.
The drug is legal under Kentucky racing rules, but only in limited amounts and must be cleared 14 days before a horse race. Medina Spirit was found to have more than double the legal limit allowed in his system.
Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert firmly pushed back against the findings, insisting the horse had never been treated with the medication and that he had been "wronged".
Should the ruling being upheld following a split sample test, Medina Spirit will be stripped of his of the Kentucky Derby crown and Mandaloun will be declared the winner.
That would effectively end the chances of a horse securing the Triple Crown this year as Mandaloun isn't racing in the Preakness Stakes.
Here's all you need to know about Saturday.
When is the Preakness Stakes?
The 146th edition of the Preakness Stakes is scheduled for Saturday, May 15. Traditionally the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes was postponed to October 3 last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Where is the Preakness Stakes?
The race takes place in its traditional home of Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The venue hosted the inaugural Preakness Stakes in 1873 and has hosted every edition since the race returned to Pimlico in 1909. Like the Kentucky Derby, the race is a Grade I Thoroughbred stakes race, but at 9.5 furlongs (1 and 3/16th of a mile) is slightly shorter than the Derby, which is contested over 10 furlongs.
Post time
Post time is scheduled for approximately 6:50 p.m. ET.
Preakness Stakes TV coverage
The Preakness Stakes will be broadcast live by NBC, with coverage beginning at 5 p.m. ET.
The telecast of other graded stakes races from Pimlico starts at 2 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network, before moving to NBC three hours later.
Preakness Stakes live stream
The race will be available on NBC digital platforms, including NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app. Coverage begins at 2 p.m. ET.
Preakness Stakes odds
Essential Quality opened as a 5-2 favorite but has since been withdrawn from the race, leaving Medina Spirit as the horse to beat in the eyes of the bookmakers and starts the race as a 7-2 favourite. The three-year-old colt won the Kentucky Derby on May 1, but could be stripped of his crown after testing positive to a banned substance in a post-race test.
Behind Medina Spirit, Concert Tour—who, like Medina Spirit, is also trained by Bob Baffert—and O Besos have the second-shortest odds at 2-1 and 7-1 respectively. Midnight Bourbon and Risk Taking both follow at 8-1, with Rombauer at 9-1 and Tarantino and Keepmeinmind both at 14-1.
Who won the 2020 Preakness Stakes?
Swiss Skydiver became only the sixth filly in history to win the Preakness Stakes last year, finishing ahead of 2020 Kentucky Derby winner Authentic.
