Preakness Stakes is Part of Horse Racing History
Preakness Has Tested the Best 3-Year-Old Race Horses For 134 Years
The Preakness began with the Dinner Party Stakes, named for the dinner party where the race was hatched by a group of sportsmen in 1868. They built Pimlico Racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland specifically to host it. The first running of the two-mile race for 3-year-olds on opening day at the new track in 1870 was won by a first-time starter named Preakness. Five of the seven runners in the inaugural event were fillies. That race later was renamed the Dixie Handicap, and its first winner is remembered today because of a race named after him.
The first Preakness was held in May 1873 for 3-year-olds at 1-1/2 miles. Twelve thousand spectators watched Survivor win by 10 lengths. Over the years, the Preakness moved around to different tracks, but returned to Baltimore permanently in 1909. After being run at different distances, it ended up at 1-3/16 miles.
Strange Preakness Moments
The most traumatic Preakness was in 2006, when Derby winner Barbaro shattered a hind leg shortly after the start. The accident led to his death the following year after exhaustive efforts to save his life failed.
When Canonero II won the Derby in 1971, people thought it was a fluke. Canonero II proved he was the real deal, blazing through the Preakness to win in a record 1:54.
In 1973, Secretariat won the second jewel on his way to a record-breaking Triple Crown, but the official timer malfunctioned and recorded his time as 1:55. This was later adjusted to 1:54.2, even though he was clocked in a record 1:53.2 by Daily Racing Form clockers. That time was later matched by Tank’s Prospect (1985) and Louis Quatorze (1996).
In 2005, Afleet Alex nearly gave his backers a heart attack when he was interfered with while making his stretch run. Alex stumbled, went to his knees, somehow got up with jockey Jeremy Rose still on board, and rallied to win.
The most unusual Preakness winner was Candy Spots, who in 1963 became the only spotted Thoroughbred to win a Classic race.
Fillies Who Competed in the Preakness
Fillies have won both the first two jewels in the same year only once. Regret and Rhine Maiden won the Derby and Preakness respectively in 1915. The only other fillies to win the Preakness were Nellie Morse, 1924; Whimsical, 1906; and Flocarline, 1903. When Whimsical won, another filly named Content ran second, the only time the girls have finished one-two.
The largest entry of fillies in the Preakness is four, in 1905, 1906 and 1909, Since 1921, there has never been more than one. Since 1939, only three fillies have competed: Genuine Risk (2nd, 1980), Winning Colours (3rd, 1988) and Excellent Meeting (pulled up, 1999).
Preakness Upsets and Trivia
Eleven horses have won the Derby and Belmont Stakes but lost the Preakness. The worst defeat was Zev, who was 12th in 1923. The “near misses” who won the first and third legs but were 2nd in the Preakness include Twenty Grand, 1931; Middleground, 1950; Needles, 1956; and Chateaugay, 1963.
The shortest-priced favourites to lose the Preakness were Riva Ridge, defeated by Bee Bee Bee in 1972, and Fusiachi Pegasus, who lost to Red Bullet in 2000. Master Derby is the longest shot to win, going off at 23-1 in 1975 to defeat favourite Foolish Pleasure.
Nine Preakness winners have sired Preakness winners. The most recent was Summer Squall, whose son Charismatic won in 1999. The last gelding to win was Funny Cide in 2003.
The shortest-priced Preakness favourites to win were Citation in 1948 and Spectacular Bid in 1979. Both went off at 1-10.
Sir Barton won the first Triple Crown in 1919.
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Bimelech, the 1940 Preakness winner.
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Candy Spots was the Preakness champion in 1963.
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