Mage leads 2023 Preakness Stakes odds as post positions are announced

By May 15, 2023, 6:29 PM EDT
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Kentucky Derby winner Mage opens as the 8-5 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s Preakness Stakes on NBC. While there are no other Kentucky Derby horses in the field, there are still formidable horses in this small but stellar field.

The 148th Preakness Stakes airs on Saturday, May 20 from 1 to 4:30 p.m. ET on CNBC and from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Coverage is also available to stream live on NBCSports.com, the NBC Sports app and Peacock. 

The Gustavo Delgado-trained colt will break from the No. 3 spot at Pimlico just two weeks after claiming victory in the Derby with Javier Castellano in the irons. A win in this year’s Preakness would be Delgado’s first. 

Bob Baffert, who was barred from being at last year’s Preakness, will return to the 2023 edition of the race with National Treasure (4-1), who finished fourth in the Santa Anita Derby.

Brad Cox colt First Mission was due to be in the field and had the second-best odds to win, but was scratched on Friday.

NBC Sports will also air the Black-Eyed Susan the day before on Friday, May 19 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. ET on Peacock.

Related: How to watch the 2023 Preakness Stakes

Preakness Stakes 2023 odds, post positions, lineup, horses

Below are the post positions for the 2023 Preakness Stakes, including opening odds as of May 15.

1. National Treasure (4-1)
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Jockey: John Velazquez

2. Chase the Chaos (50-1)
Trainer: Ed Moger, Jr.
Jockey: Sheldon Russell

3. Mage (8-5)
Trainer: Gustavo Delgado
Jockey: Javier Castellano

4. Coffeewithchris (20-1)
Trainer: John Salzman, Jr.
Jockey: Jamie Rodriguez

5. Red Route One (10-1)
Trainer: Steven Asmussen
Jockey: Joel Rosario

6. Perform (15-1)
Trainer: Claude McGaughey III
Jockey: Feargal Lynch

7. Blazing Sevens (6-1)
Trainer: Chad Brown
Jockey: Irad Oritz Jr.

SCR First Mission (5-2)
Trainer: Brad Cox
Jockey: Luis Saez

Watch the 148th running of the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, May 20 from 1 to 4:30 p.m. ET on CNBC and moves to NBC from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. ET. You can also watch on NBCSports.com, the NBC Sports app and Peacock.

Forte works out, waits for Belmont Stakes clearance

Associated PressMay 27, 2023, 3:14 PM EDT
Matt Stone/USA TODAY NETWORK
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NEW YORK — Forte, the early Kentucky Derby favorite who was scratched on the day of the race, worked out in preparation for a possible start in the Belmont Stakes on June 10.

Under regular rider Irad Ortiz Jr., Forte worked five-eighths of a mile for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher. It was the colt’s second workout since being scratched from the Derby on May 6.

“It seems like he’s maintained his fitness level,” Pletcher said. “It seems like everything is in good order.”

Forte was placed on a mandatory 14-day veterinary list after being scratched from the Derby because of a bruised right front foot. In order to be removed from the list, the colt had to work in front of a state veterinarian and give a blood sample afterward, the results of which take five days.

“There’s protocols in place and we had to adhere to those and we’re happy that everything went smoothly,” Pletcher said. “We felt confident the horse was in good order or we wouldn’t have been out there twice in the last six days, but you still want to make sure everything went smoothly and we’re happy everything did go well.”

Pletcher said Kingsbarns, who finished 14th in the Kentucky Derby, will miss the Belmont. The colt is showing signs of colic, although he is fine, the trainer said.

Another Pletcher-trained horse, Prove Worthy, is under consideration for the Belmont. He also has Tapit Trice, who finished seventh in the Derby, being pointed toward the Belmont.

Judge grants Churchill Downs’ request for summary judgment to dismiss Bob Baffert’s lawsuit

Associated PressMay 25, 2023, 9:36 PM EDT
churchill downs
Abbey Cutrer/USA TODAY NETWORK
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A federal judge has granted Churchill Downs’ motion for summary judgment that dismisses Bob Baffert’s claim the track breached due process by suspending the Hall of Fame trainer for two years.

Churchill Downs Inc. suspended Baffert in June 2021 after his now-deceased colt, Medina Spirit, failed a postrace drug test after crossing the finish line first in the 147th Kentucky Derby. The trainer’s request to lift the discipline was denied in February, keeping him out of the Derby for a second consecutive May.

U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings ruled in a 12-page opinion issued Wednesday that Churchill Downs’ suspension of Baffert did not devalue his Kentucky trainer’s license. It cited his purse winnings exceeding $1 million at Keeneland in Lexington and stated that his argument “amounts to a false analogy that distorts caselaw.”

Jennings denied CDI’s motion to stay discovery as moot.

The decision comes less than a week after Baffert-trained colt National Treasure won the Preakness in his first Triple Crown race in two years. His record eighth win in the second jewel of the Triple Crown came hours after another of his horses, Havnameltdown, was euthanized following an injury at Pimlico.

Churchill Downs said in a statement that it was pleased with the court’s favorable ruling as in Baffert’s other cases.

It added, “While he may choose to file baseless appeals, this completes the seemingly endless, arduous and unnecessary litigation proceedings instigated by Mr. Baffert.”

Baffert’s suspension is scheduled to end on June 2, but the track’s release noted its right to extend it “and will communicate our decision” at its conclusion.