History Of Preakness Stakes

1. History Of Preakness Stakes
2. History Of The Preakness Stakes
3. History Of Preakness Stakes Betting
4. Preakness Stakes Bet
5. Belmont Stakes
6. History Of Preakness Stakes Entries

Belmont Stakes Futures (No cache) Pending Update

Learn about the rich history of the Preakness Stakes and how to bet on the race. Also, a recap of the previous Triple Crown races.

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The conclusion of the Triple Crown horse racing series is the Belmont Stakes. If a horse has won both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes it is now in contention for horse racing glory. All it needs to do is get around the track at Belmont Park and finish first. Then, a new page will be written in the horse racing history books. Many have tried, many have come close, but more often than not, winning the Belmont Stakes AND the Triple Crown can prove to be very elusive and almost mystical. Only a handful of horses have ever won the Triple Crown in the history of American horse racing, with the last winner in the 1970s. Will history be rewritten this year, or will a potential Triple Crown winner bust? You’ll have to bet and find out!

The track record at Belmont Park is held by none other than Secretariat, the mythical horse of the 1973 horse racing season that changed the sport forever. He is the lone horse in history to have broken the 2 minute barrier at Belmont Park, posting a record 1:59 time that has stood for over 40 years. Is it even possible to come close to Secretariat’s memorable performance? You would think so: surely the advances made in horse breeding, nutrition, and training would produce another top contender. Unfortunately, no one has ever come close to Secretariat’s achievements, and his records have never been broken. Will his record time fall this year at the Belmont Stakes? It would be an incredible feat it happened; and would captivate the hearts and minds of America much like Secretariat did in 1973.

We suggest signing up and depositing at one of our select horse racebooks well before the gates open at Belmont Park. Why? Well, if you’ve ever been at a horse racetrack, you’ve no doubt experienced the last minute rush to the betting window, which inevitably closes before some bettors can get their ticket in. Don’t let this happen to you when it comes time for Belmont Stakes betting. Instead, get your account setup, deposit funds, and then wait until the right moment before the race to place your bets. That way, you essentially circumvent the last minute crowd who leaves their credit card processing to chance (you never know when a sportsbook will lose its financial processing capabilities), and are sitting pretty just in time for the jockeys to be summoned to their horses. Make life easy, not difficult. Plan ahead and you’ll reap the financial rewards.

History Of Preakness Stakes

What happens after Belmont Stakes betting? The close of the Belmont Stakes signifies the end of the Triple Crown challenge, but that doesn’t mean horse racing betting is gone until next year. To the contrary, a number of exciting races can be found around the nation, some which are contested at Belmont Park, Pimlico, or Churchill Downs. Many of these races are “Grade 1” horse racing events, which means only select horses that have met certain criteria can race. The horse racing season essentially ends in November, when the Breeders’ Cup Challenge is held. So don’t worry if your racebook player’s account is loaded after a successful Belmont Stakes: there’re plenty of opportunities after June for making even more money if you can handicap horses correctly. Don’t forget, many online racebooks also offer wagering on harness racing events. Many top racetracks that offer harness racing have important races of their own, that are just as critical to the harness racing season as the Triple Crown is to standard horse racing.

Please be sure to review our list of USA racebook deposit options to fund your sportsbook player’s account. Don’t wait any longer, or else you risk getting lost in the last-minute crowd. Always fund your account a few days before the Belmont Stakes is slated to begin, and THEN make your bets as the race start draw near.

Horseraces infobox
class = Grade 1
horse race = Preakness Stakes
caption = 'The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans'
location = Pimlico Race Course
Baltimore, Marylandflagicon USA
inaugurated = 1873
race type = Thoroughbred
website = [http://www.preakness.com/ Preakness Stakes]
distance = 1 3/16 miles (9.5 furlongs)
track = Dirt, Left-handed
qualification = 3-year-old
weight = Colt/Gelding: 126 lb (57.2 kg)
Filly: 121 lb (54.9 kg)
purse = US$1 million
bonuses = The Preakness Stakes is an AmericanGrade I stakes race 1-3/16 mile (1.91 km) thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses, held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57 kg); fillies 121 lb (55 kg). The Preakness Stakes has been termed 'The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans' because a horseshoe of black-eyed susans ('Rudbeckia hirta'), the state flower of Maryland, is traditionally placed around the winner's neck.

History

Two years before the Kentucky Derby was run for the first time, Pimlico introduced its new stakes race for three-year-olds, the Preakness, during its first-ever spring race meet in 1873 . Former Maryland GovernorOden Bowie named the then mile and one-half (2.41 km) race in honor of the colt Preakness from Milton Holbrook Sanford'sPreakness Stables in Preakness, Wayne Township, New Jersey who won the Dinner Party Stakes on the day Pimlico Race Course opened on October 25, 1870.

The first Preakness drew seven starters; John Chamberlain's three-year-old, Survivor, galloped home easily by 10 lengths, the largest margin of victory until 2004, winning a purse of $2,050.

In 1889, George 'Spider' Anderson became the first African-American jockey to win the Preakness.

History Of The Preakness Stakes

In 1890 Morris Park Racecourse in the Bronx, New York hosted the Preakness Stakes after which there was no race run for three years. For the 15 years from 1894 through 1908, the race was held at Gravesend Race Track on Coney Island, New York.

Evolution of the Triple Crown series

The Preakness is the second leg in American thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown series and almost always attracts the Kentucky Derby winner, some of the other horses that ran in the Derby, and often a few horses that did not start in the Derby. The Preakness is 1 3/16 miles, or 9 1/2 furlongs, compared to the Kentucky Derby, which is 1 1/4 miles. It is followed by the third leg, the Belmont Stakes, which is 1 1/2 miles.

Since 1931, the order of Triple Crown races has the Kentucky Derby first, followed by the Preakness Stakes and then the Belmont Stakes. Prior to 1931, eleven times the Preakness was run before the Derby. On May 12, 1917 and again on May 13, 1922, the Preakness and the Derby were run on the same day. [http://www.turfnsport.com/triplecrown/preakness-stakes.php]

Running the race

History Of Preakness Stakes Betting

Just after the horses for the Preakness are called to the post, the audience is invited to sing 'Maryland, My Maryland,' the official state song of Maryland. Traditionally, the United States Naval AcademyGlee Club assembles in the Pimlico infield to lead the song.

As soon as the Preakness winner has been declared official, a painter climbs a ladder to the top of a replica of the Old Clubhouse cupola. S/he applies the colors of the victorious owner's silks on the jockey and horse that are part of the weather vane atop the infield structure. The horseshoe of black-eyed Susans is placed around the winning horse's neck at this time and a replica of the Woodlawn Vase is given to the winning horse's owner. Should that horse have also won the Kentucky Derby, speculation and excitement immediately begin to mount as to whether that horse will go on to win the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing at the Belmont Stakes in June.

The practice started in 1909 at Pimlico when a horse and rider weather vane sat at the top of the old Members' Clubhouse, which was constructed when Pimlico opened in 1870. The Victorian building was destroyed by fire in June 1966. A replica of the old building's cupola was built to stand in the Preakness winner's circle in the infield.

Winning the race

In 1917, the first 'Woodlawn Vase' was awarded to the Preakness winner, who was not allowed to keep it. Eventually a half-size reproduction of the trophy was given to winners to keep permanently. The original trophy is kept at the Maryland Historical Society and brought to the Preakness race each year for the winner's presentation ceremony.

In 1918, 26 horses entered the race, and it was run in two divisions, providing for two winners that year. Currently, the race is limited to 14 horses.

In 1948, the Preakness was televised for the first time by CBS.

The Preakness has been run at seven different distances:
*1-1/2 miles (2.41 km) : 1873-1888, 1890
*1-1/4 miles (2.01 km) : 1889
*1-1/16 miles (1.71 km) : 1894-1900, 1908
*1 mile 70 yards (1.67 km) : 1901-1907
*1 mile (1.61 km) : 1909, 1910
*1-1/8 miles (1.81 km) : 1911-1924
*1-3/16 miles (1.91 km) : 1925-present

Preakness Stakes Bet

The leading Preakness winning jockeys are:
*Eddie Arcaro : (6) including two consecutive wins in 1950-51
*Pat Day : (5) including three consecutive wins in 1994-96
*George Barbee, Bill Hartack and Lloyd Hughes: (3)

The leading Preakness winning trainers are:
*R. Wyndham Walden: (7)
*Thomas J. Healey, D. Wayne Lukas: (5)
*Jim Fitzsimmons, Jimmy Jones, Bob Baffert: (4)
*John Whalen: (3)

Calumet Farm is both the leading breeder and owner of Preakness winners with seven each.

Set by Tank's Prospect in 1985 and equaled by Louis Quatorze in 1996 and Curlin in 2007, the time record for the current 1-3/16 miles (1.91 km) Preakness is 1:53 2/5 seconds. (Secretariat, the 1973 winner, was also credited with running 1:53 2/5 by the Daily Racing Form. However, the timer malfunctioned during that race, and Pimlico Race Course does not recognize that time, instead assigning Secretariat a time of 1:54 2/5.) The record victory margin is 11½ lengths, by Smarty Jones in 2004.

Four fillies have won the Preakness:
*1903 - Flocarline
*1906 - Whimsical
*1915 - Rhine Maiden
*1924 - Nellie Morse

List of winners

Belmont Stakes

A † designates a Triple Crown Winner

Note: D. Wayne Lukas swept the 1995 Triple Crown with two different horses.

In 2006, Kentucky Derby Winner Barbaro broke down in the first 100 yards of the Preakness. Bernardini went on to win the prestigious event. Barbaro survived his injuries and was cared for at the New Bolton Center of the University of Pennsylvania but was euthanizedJanuary 29, 2007. This year's ninth race is now called the Barbaro Stakes in his honor.

History Of Preakness Stakes Entries

References

External links

* [http://www.preakness.com/ Preakness Stakes website]
* [http://www.preakness-stakes.info Preakness Stakes]
* [http://www.gohorsebetting.com/preaknessstakes/ Preakness Stakes Betting]
* [http://sports.espn.go.com/travel/news/story?id=2420471 ESPN.com Attending the Preakness (includes future dates)]