Two weeks after Mystik Dan won the Kentucky Derby in a photo finish, the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown is set to run today with the 149th Preakness Stakes in Baltimore.
The post time is set for 7:01 p.m. ET.
Eight horses will run in this year’s event after previous favorite Muth was scratched Wednesday due to a fever. Only horses that are three years old are eligible to race in the Preakness Stakes, and it’s open to both male and female horses. The race is 1 3/16 miles long.
The Athletic has you covered with the latest updates and race analysis, including a full breakdown of the 2024 field.
How to watch
Television coverage for the 2024 Preakness Stakes starts at 4:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Preliminary coverage starts at 1:30 p.m. on CNBC. All coverage can also be streamed on Peacock.
As a horse whinnied loudly somewhere off in the distance, Bob Baffert joked that the animal clearly had something to add to the conversation. There is, of course, a lot to talk about where Baffert is concerned.
Horse racing’s most recognizable face has become horse racing’s biggest lightning rod. Depending on who you ask, Baffert is either a blight on the sport that needs to be removed, or is a victim being persecuted by a sport he helped steer out of near extinction. For the past three years, Baffert has fought in both actual court and the court of public opinion to save his reputation, pitting the man who has won the Kentucky Derby six times against Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI), the race’s caretaker.
On the only scorecard that matters, CDI has won. The track officials’ three-year banishment of Baffert has stood. Baffert has not competed in horse racing’s premier event since his would-be seventh Kentucky Derby winner, Medina Spirit, was disqualified in 2022.
But in an exclusive conversation with The Athletic, Baffert, who waffled between anger and exasperation for much of his suspension, no longer sounds like a man up for a fight. He sounds, instead, like he’s ready to put the gloves down and find a reconciliation. “While I had to sit out the 150th Kentucky Derby, I am committed to having an amicable resolution with Churchill Downs in order to have the opportunity to compete again for the Triple Crown,’’ he said.
The catch, of course, is it’s not really up to him. The decision to allow Baffert to race again in Louisville, as the courts have determined, is Churchill’s to make. Baffert is well aware of that, and when asked how a peace treaty might be brokered, the trainer deferred to the track. “I just look forward to hopefully being able to race there next year,’’ he said.
Two weeks after Mystik Dan won the Kentucky Derby in a photo finish, the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown is set to run today with the 149th Preakness Stakes in Baltimore.
The post time is set for 7:01 p.m. ET.
Eight horses will run in this year’s event after previous favorite Muth was scratched Wednesday due to a fever. Only horses that are three years old are eligible to race in the Preakness Stakes, and it’s open to both male and female horses. The race is 1 3/16 miles long.
The Athletic has you covered with the latest updates and race analysis, including a full breakdown of the 2024 field.
How to watch
Television coverage for the 2024 Preakness Stakes starts at 4:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Preliminary coverage starts at 1:30 p.m. on CNBC. All coverage can also be streamed on Peacock.
As a horse whinnied loudly somewhere off in the distance, Bob Baffert joked that the animal clearly had something to add to the conversation. There is, of course, a lot to talk about where Baffert is concerned.
Horse racing’s most recognizable face has become horse racing’s biggest lightning rod. Depending on who you ask, Baffert is either a blight on the sport that needs to be removed, or is a victim being persecuted by a sport he helped steer out of near extinction. For the past three years, Baffert has fought in both actual court and the court of public opinion to save his reputation, pitting the man who has won the Kentucky Derby six times against Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI), the race’s caretaker.
On the only scorecard that matters, CDI has won. The track officials’ three-year banishment of Baffert has stood. Baffert has not competed in horse racing’s premier event since his would-be seventh Kentucky Derby winner, Medina Spirit, was disqualified in 2022.
But in an exclusive conversation with The Athletic, Baffert, who waffled between anger and exasperation for much of his suspension, no longer sounds like a man up for a fight. He sounds, instead, like he’s ready to put the gloves down and find a reconciliation. “While I had to sit out the 150th Kentucky Derby, I am committed to having an amicable resolution with Churchill Downs in order to have the opportunity to compete again for the Triple Crown,’’ he said.
The catch, of course, is it’s not really up to him. The decision to allow Baffert to race again in Louisville, as the courts have determined, is Churchill’s to make. Baffert is well aware of that, and when asked how a peace treaty might be brokered, the trainer deferred to the track. “I just look forward to hopefully being able to race there next year,’’ he said.