The 2021 Preakness Stakes was the 146th
Preakness Stakes
The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually on Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland (except in 2026 when it will move to Laurel Park (race track), Laurel Park dur ...
, a
Grade I stakes race for three-year-old
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...
s at a distance of miles (1.9 km). The race is one leg of the
American Triple Crown and is held annually at
Pimlico Race Course
Pimlico Race Course is a thoroughbred horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of O ...
in
Baltimore
Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
. The Preakness Stakes is traditionally held on the third Saturday in May, two weeks after the
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...
. The 2021 Preakness took place on May 15 with an actual start time of 6:54 p.m.
EDT,
[ with television coverage by ]NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
. The race was won by Rombauer.
Background
Due to effects from the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, the 2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
edition was run outside of its normal May schedule, contested as the final leg of the Triple Crown on October 3, without spectators. In late March 2021, organizers announced that attendance at the 2021 Preakness would be limited to 10,000. The 2021 Triple Crown races returned to their traditional sequence and schedule, with Medina Spirit
Medina Spirit (April 5, 2018 – December 6, 2021) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who finished first in the 2021 Kentucky Derby before being disqualified. He came second in the 2021 Breeders' Cup Classic and third in the 2021 Preakness ...
winning the 2021 Kentucky Derby
The 2021 Kentucky Derby (officially, the 2021 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve) was the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby. It took place on May 1, 2021, in Louisville, Kentucky. The field was open to 20 horses, who qualified for th ...
on May 1.
Field
Soon after the Derby, trainer Bob Baffert
Robert A. Baffert (born January 13, 1953) is an American racehorse trainer. He has trained two Triple Crown winners: American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018. Baffert's horses have won the Kentucky Derby six times, tying the record with ...
confirmed that Medina Spirit would be entered in the Preakness.betamethasone
Betamethasone is a corticosteroid, steroid medication. It is used for a number of diseases including rheumatic disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus, skin diseases such as dermatitis and psoriasis, allergic co ...
, a corticosteroid, following the Derby, and stands to be disqualified if the split sample confirms the positive. Pimlico agreed to accept the entry of Medina Spirit on the condition that he undergo blood testing, monitoring, and a review of medical records prior to the Preakness;Brad Cox
Brad J. Cox (May 2, 1944 – January 2, 2021) was an American computer scientist who was known mostly for creating the Objective-C programming language with his business partner Tom Love and for his work in software engineering (specifically so ...
stated that Mandaloun
The mandaloun () is a term given to a type of mullioned window. The mandaloun is an element of the traditional architecture of Lebanon that first appeared in the 17th-century stately mansions and later in the vernacular houses of the mountains o ...
, who had finished second in the Derby and stood to be declared the winner upon a disqualification of Medina Spirit, would bypass the Preakness. Essential Quality
Essential Quality (foaled April 9, 2018) is a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2021 Belmont Stakes, the 2021 Travers Stakes, and the 2020 Breeders' Cup Juvenile. He was named the 2020 Champion Two-Year-Old and the 2021 Cham ...
, who had been the favorite in the Derby before finishing fourth, was also ruled out of the Preakness.[ In their absence, the main rival to Medina Spirit was expected to be his stablemate, Concert Tour, who had won two stakes races but finished third in his most recent start in the ]Arkansas Derby
The Arkansas Derby is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt.
In 2004, t ...
. Midnight Bourbon
Midnight Bourbon (January 25, 2018 – April 17, 2022) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2021 Lecomte Stakes and came second in the 2021 Preakness Stakes and Travers Stakes and 2022 Saudi Cup.
Midnight Bourbon died suddenly f ...
was expected to be the third betting choice based on his sixth-place finish in the Derby, second-place finish in the Louisiana Derby
The Louisiana Derby is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Run in late March, the race is open to horses, age three, willing to race miles on the dirt. It currently o ...
and win in the Lecomte Stakes.
The post-position draw was held on May 11.[
At post time, Midnight Bourbon and Medina Spirit went off as co-betting favorites each at 5-2.
]
Result
Source:
Payout
* $1 Exacta (6–5) $49.30
* $1 Trifecta (6–5–3) $162.70
* $1 Superfecta (6–5–3–2) $1,025.50
* $1 Super High Five (6–5–3–2–4) $4,857.80
Source:
Splits for each quarter-mile: (:23.77) (:23.16) (:24.04) (:23.81) (:18.84 for final )
References
External links
*
Preakness Stakes 2021 (Full Race)
from NBC Sports
NBC Sports is an American programming division for NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, that is responsible for sports broadcasts on their broadcast network NBC, the Cable television, cable channels NBC owns, and on Peacock (streaming service) ...
via YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Preakness Stakes, 2021
2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
2021 in horse racing
2021 in American sports
May 2021 sports events in the United States
Horse races in Maryland
2021 in sports in Maryland
2021 in Baltimore