The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans arrives on Saturday 16 May 2026, and the 151st Preakness Stakes brings with it one of the most intriguing storylines in recent Triple Crown history: for the first time in 108 years, the second jewel will not be run at Pimlico Race Course.
The race moves to Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland, as Pimlico Race Course undergoes renovations. Next year, the prestigious race returns to Pimlico.
Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo will not be in the 2026 Preakness Stakes field, leaving Justify (2018) as the most recent Triple Crown winner for at least another year. It's still a strong field of 2026 Preakness Stakes horses, however, with Gotham Stakes winner Iron Honor listed as the favourite at 9-2 in the 2026 Preakness Stakes odds.
Bet on the full Preakness field at Duelbits Sportsbook.
Odds are morning-line prices correct at time of writing and subject to change.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Race | 151st Preakness Stakes (Grade I) |
| Date | Saturday 16 May 2026 |
| Post Time | 7:01 PM EDT / 00:01 CET (Sun 17 May) |
| Venue | Laurel Park, Laurel, Maryland |
| Distance | 1 and 3/16 miles (9.5 furlongs) |
| TV | NBC / Peacock (USA) - coverage from 1 PM EDT |
| Field Size | 14 horses |
| Derby Winner Present? | No - Golden Tempo skipping |
Morning-line odds. Live prices available at Duelbits Sportsbook under Horse Racing.
| Post | Horse | Odds | Trainer | Jockey |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taj Mahal | 5-1 | Brittany Russell | Sheldon Russell |
| 2 | Ocelli | 6-1 | Whit Beckman | Tyler Gaffalione |
| 3 | Crupper | 30-1 | Donnie Von Hemel | Junior Alvarado |
| 4 | Robusta | 30-1 | Doug O'Neill | Rafael Bejarano |
| 5 | Talkin | 20-1 | Danny Gargan | Irad Ortiz Jr. |
| 6 | Chip Honcho | 5-1 | Steve Asmussen | Jose Ortiz |
| 7 | Bull by the Horns | 30-1 | - | - |
| 8 | Napoleon Solo | 8-1 | - | - |
| 9 | Iron Honor | 9-2 (FAV) | Chad Brown | Flavien Prat |
| 10 | Corona de Oro | 30-1 | Dallas Stewart | John Velazquez |
| 11 | The Hell We Did | - | - | - |
| 12 | Incredibolt | 5-1 | Riley Mott | Jaime Torres |
| 13 | Great White | 15-1 | John Ennis | Alex Achard |
| 14 | Pretty Boy Miah | 15-1 | Jeremiah Englehart | Ricardo Santana Jr. |
Iron Honor is listed as the morning favourite at 9-2 and drew the ninth post position. Trainer Chad Brown, who won his first career Kentucky Oaks this year with Always a Runner, is seeking his third Preakness win.
He broke his maiden with a fast run at Aqueduct Racetrack last December and then followed that up with a win at the Gotham Stakes in late February. After that Gotham victory, Iron Honor entered the Wood Memorial as the favourite, and finished seventh.
After a disappointing seventh in the Wood Memorial with Iron Honor, Brown elected to skip the Kentucky Derby and focus on the Preakness with the horse. Brown's two previous Preakness winners (Cloud Computing in 2017 and Early Voting in 2022) also ran in the Wood Memorial and then bypassed the Kentucky Derby.
The pattern is remarkably consistent: Chad Brown, Wood Memorial, bypass the Derby, win the Preakness. If you believe in trainer intent and historical precedent, Iron Honor at 9-2 is the most compelling favourite play on the card.
The question every Iron Honor backer must answer honestly: how much stock to put in his poor run at the Wood Memorial? A seventh-place finish as the favourite is a red flag. Whether that was a bad day or a fundamental form problem is what separates the Iron Honor believers from the faders.
Verdict: The most analytically defensible favourite. Chad Brown's playbook with Iron Honor mirrors his exact approach with both previous Preakness winners. Back at 9-2.
Taj Mahal is undefeated in three starts at Laurel, including a front-end runaway trip in the Federico Tesio which locked up a Preakness spot for him. In February he won by a neck in the Miracle Wood with another gate-to-wire effort. Brittany Russell was the leading trainer by wins for the last three years in Maryland.
Trainer Brittany Russell, who is based year-round at Laurel Park, is trying to become the first female trainer to win the Preakness on the heels of Cherie DeVaux winning the 2026 Kentucky Derby with Golden Tempo and Jena Antonucci winning the 2023 Belmont with Arcangelo.
Taj Mahal's case is unique: a perfect record at the specific track hosting the Preakness, trained by someone who runs horses there year-round and knows every inch of Laurel Park. The concern is level of competition, none of his three wins came against horses that had been on the Kentucky Derby trail.
He's a perfect 3-for-3 in his career, with all his wins coming at Laurel Park. That comfort level around this track is a big factor in why he's among the favorites. Level of competition, however, is a question mark since he hasn't faced the caliber of horses that many who were on the Derby trail have.
Verdict: Fascinating each-way play. Laurel Park specialist, frontrunner who knows every turn of this track, female trainer trying to make history. But the competition concern is real. At 5-1, include in exacta and trifecta combinations rather than a straight win bet.
Incredibolt was a last-minute addition to the Preakness after he finished sixth in the Kentucky Derby. He raced in the heart of the Derby field and had to alter course while closing from 14th to finish sixth. He won twice on the Derby trail in the Street Sense (G3) as a 2-year-old and then in the Virginia Derby in March.
A last-minute entry by trainer Riley Mott, the son of Bolt d'Oro didn't run a bad Derby. He was bumped and ran on to finish sixth. Mott says he's training well and he wouldn't show up if he didn't think he has a big chance.
Incredibolt entered the Derby with 23-1 odds and finished in sixth place. Wins at the Virginia Derby and the Street Sense Stakes sandwiched a sixth-place run at the Holy Bull, so he's another horse that has shown some boom-or-bust tendencies leading up to the Preakness Stakes.
The trainer's confidence is the compelling data point. Riley Mott, son of legendary trainer Bill Mott, added Incredibolt as a last-minute Preakness entry specifically because he believes in the horse's readiness. When a trainer voluntarily pays the late entry fee, it typically means the horse is doing something special in training.
Verdict: Strong win contender. The Derby traffic and bump potentially masked his true form at Churchill Downs. Against a softer field than the Derby, Incredibolt can win at 5-1. The boom-or-bust tendency is a risk factor to manage with stake sizing.
Ocelli is still seeking his first victory despite having the lead in the stretch in the Kentucky Derby and finishing third, just a length behind the top two. He was also third in the nine-furlong Wood Memorial (G2), where he also rallied from far back in the early stages of the race.
Ocelli is a maiden that finished third in the Run for the Roses. A horse that has finished third three times in graded stakes competition, never winning, needs to find his breakthrough at a major race for the first time. That's a difficult ask, but at 6-1 the odds build in that uncertainty.
The Preakness's shorter distance (1 3/16 miles vs Derby's 1.25 miles) may suit Ocelli slightly better, he's a horse that closes well and the shorter distance means the pace scenario unfolds faster, potentially benefiting his late-running style.
Verdict: Logical trifecta inclusion. Consistent place finisher who hasn't found that first win but runs every race well. At 6-1 for a win bet, the maiden-tag concern limits confidence. Best used in the bottom of exacta boxes and trifecta plays.
Jockey Jose Ortiz, who rode Golden Tempo to the Kentucky Derby win, will be with Chip Honcho as he goes for his second Preakness victory.
He did finish second at the Risen Star Stakes and won the Gun Runner Stakes, but a fifth-place finish at the Louisiana Derby brings some concerns about his ability to compete against this field.
Chip Honcho has the pedigree of a legitimate contender, second in the Risen Star, winner of the Gun Runner, but that Louisiana Derby fifth is a concern. Jose Ortiz brings star-power jockey credentials after winning the Kentucky Derby with Golden Tempo, which may be inflating Chip Honcho's price slightly beyond his pure form.
Verdict: Include in exotic combinations but not a primary win selection. The Louisiana Derby fifth against a weaker field than this one is the main concern.
He had an impressive 2025, breaking his maiden at Saratoga in August and then winning the Grade-I Champagne Stakes in October. He hasn't been as strong in 2026, however, finishing fifth in both the Wood Memorial and Fountain of Youth Stakes. "The son of Liam's Map will likely be near the front of the pack; he finished fifth in the Wood Memorial and is not without a shot to hit the board."
Napoleon Solo won a Grade I race at Saratoga, elite form in the right context. His 2026 campaign has been disappointing, but the Champagne Stakes victory and Saratoga breeding suggest there's more ability here than his recent results show.
Verdict: The most interesting each-way position in the field at 8-1. A horse with Grade I quality at a price that reflects recent form concerns rather than peak ability.
It is not very often that you can get one of the country's best jockeys in a big race like the Preakness on a horse who is 20-1 morning line. Talkin closed well in his first two races last year. In the Champagne he was second on a day when Napoleon Solo ran off from the field.
Irad Ortiz Jr. is one of the best jockeys in the game, the fact that he's riding a 20-1 shot rather than being on a shorter-priced horse suggests he either has a reason to believe in Talkin or his main book was already closed. As a closer in a race likely to be set up with early pace, Talkin's prospects depend entirely on the race developing in his favour.
Verdict: The analyst's dark horse. Small longshot stake at 20-1 for inclusion in trifecta and superfecta combinations.
Robusta (30-1): Robusta finished 14th in the Kentucky Derby, a distant last-place run that leaves him with a difficult case for a Preakness win. The shorter distance may improve him, but a 14th-place Derby finish is hard to overlook. Exotic only.
Great White (15-1): Great White was a last-minute scratch from the Kentucky Derby and is entered in the Preakness. An intriguing unknown, we don't have Derby form to assess, and the late scratch raises questions about readiness. The mystery factor makes 15-1 an interesting speculative position.
Chad Brown, who won his first career Kentucky Oaks this year with Always a Runner, is seeking his third Preakness win. Brown's two previous Preakness winners (Cloud Computing in 2017 and Early Voting in 2022) also ran in the Wood Memorial and then bypassed the Kentucky Derby.
The Wood Memorial → skip Derby → win Preakness pattern is not a coincidence. Brown has specifically deployed this strategy twice before and it worked both times. Iron Honor is following that exact blueprint.
The 2026 Preakness is the first time this race has been held anywhere other than Pimlico in 108 years. Taj Mahal's trainer Brittany Russell is the leading trainer by wins at Laurel Park over the past three years, and Taj Mahal has never lost there. This home-track advantage at a temporary venue is unprecedented in the race's history, and it's entirely uncharted territory for assessing its true significance.
Brittany Russell is trying to become the first female trainer to win the Preakness on the heels of Cherie DeVaux winning the 2026 Kentucky Derby with Golden Tempo. If Russell wins with Taj Mahal, women trainers will have won two of the three Triple Crown races in a single year, which has never happened before.
Golden Tempo will not be in the 2026 Preakness Stakes field, leaving Justify (2018) as the most recent Triple Crown winner for at least another year. Golden Tempo's absence marks the third time in five years that the Kentucky Derby winner has skipped the second leg of the Triple Crown.
Pick one horse to finish first. The simplest bet. At Laurel Park for the Preakness, all prices quoted are decimal, Iron Honor at 9-2 is equivalent to 5.50 decimal (risk $1, return $5.50 total).
Pick the first two finishers in exact order. Exacta boxes allow you to cover multiple order combinations. Recommended exacta: Box Iron Honor and Taj Mahal.
Pick the first three finishers in exact order. A trifecta box on three horses gives you six winning combinations. Recommended trifecta box: Iron Honor, Incredibolt, Ocelli.
Pick the first four finishers in exact order. A 10-cent superfecta box covering multiple horses keeps the cost manageable while chasing a significant payout.
For a complete guide to horse racing bet types including superfectas, read our Kentucky Derby betting guide, all the same bet types apply to the Preakness.
| Bet | Selection | Odds | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Win | Iron Honor | 9-2 | Chad Brown's proven Wood Memorial → Preakness blueprint |
| Each-Way | Napoleon Solo | 8-1 | Grade I Champagne winner, undervalued at current price |
| Trifecta Box | Iron Honor / Incredibolt / Ocelli | Combination | Derby-tested horses behind a fresher favourite |
| Longshot | Talkin | 20-1 | Irad Ortiz Jr., closer in a pace-heavy field, elite jockey value |
Bet on all Preakness markets at Duelbits Sportsbook.
Odds are morning-line prices. Check Duelbits Sportsbook for live prices as they update through the week.
The 151st Preakness Stakes post time is 7:01 PM EDT on Saturday 16 May 2026 (00:01 CET Sunday 17 May). NBC and Peacock will carry live coverage, with NBC's Laurel Park broadcast beginning at 1 PM EDT with the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes on Friday 15 May.
When is the Preakness Stakes 2026? Saturday 16 May 2026 at Laurel Park, Laurel, Maryland. Post time 7:01 PM EDT. Coverage on NBC and Peacock from 1 PM EDT.
Who is the favourite for the 2026 Preakness Stakes? Iron Honor at 9-2, trained by Chad Brown (two-time Preakness winner) and ridden by Flavien Prat. Taj Mahal, Chip Honcho, and Incredibolt are all joint second-favourites at 5-1.
Why isn't Golden Tempo in the Preakness? The Kentucky Derby winner's connections chose to skip the Preakness, the third time in five years a Derby winner has bypassed the second leg of the Triple Crown. A 2026 Triple Crown is no longer possible.
Why is the 2026 Preakness at Laurel Park instead of Pimlico? Pimlico Race Course is undergoing renovations in 2026. This is the first Preakness not held at Pimlico in 108 years. The race returns to Pimlico in 2027.
What is the Triple Crown? Winning all three, Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes, in a single season. The most recent Triple Crown winner was Justify in 2018.
Which Kentucky Derby horses are in the 2026 Preakness? Three: Ocelli (finished 3rd), Incredibolt (6th), and Robusta (14th).
What distance is the Preakness Stakes? 1 and 3/16 miles (9.5 furlongs), slightly shorter than the Kentucky Derby (1.25 miles).
Where can I bet on the Preakness Stakes 2026? All Preakness markets are available on Duelbits Sportsbook under Horse Racing → Preakness Stakes. Post time is 7:01 PM EDT, Saturday 16 May.
