2026 Preakness Stakes Betting Preview: Golden Tempo Skips, Crude Velocity Leads the Field at Laurel Park

The 151st Preakness Stakes is taking shape as a wide-open race following confirmation on May 6 that Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo will bypass the second leg of the Triple Crown. With the favorite out of the picture, Crude Velocity emerges as the morning-line favorite at 4-1 heading into a field that will be set on Monday, May 11, with the race scheduled for Saturday, May 16 at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland.

Why Golden Tempo Is Skipping the Preakness

Trainer Cherie DeVaux, who made history at the Kentucky Derby by becoming the first female trainer to win the race, announced the decision Wednesday. DeVaux cited the two-week turnaround following such a demanding effort, saying the team’s priority is Golden Tempo’s long-term health and well-being. The connections are pointing the colt toward the Belmont Stakes on June 6 instead. It is the second consecutive year a Kentucky Derby winner has skipped the Preakness — Sovereignty bypassed it in 2025 — and continues a pattern that has made Triple Crown attempts increasingly rare in recent years.

The Venue: First Preakness at Laurel Park

This year’s Preakness is also historic in another way: it is the first time the race has been held anywhere other than its traditional home of Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore in the modern era. Pimlico is currently undergoing a $400 million redevelopment project and is not expected to reopen until 2027. The Maryland Jockey Club moved the race to Laurel Park, located at 198 Laurel Race Track Road in Laurel, Maryland. The track’s configuration and surface will play an important role in evaluating each contender.

The Contenders and Early Odds

With the post draw scheduled for Monday, May 11, the morning-line odds represent the best available pre-draw picture of the betting landscape. Here is where the key horses stand heading into the draw.

• Crude Velocity (4-1): The Pat Day Mile winner trained by Bob Baffert arrives as the morning-line favorite. Baffert is a Preakness institution with multiple wins at Pimlico, and Crude Velocity has not been tested in a race as long as 1 3/16 miles. His ability to handle the step up in distance will be the central question on Saturday.
• Iron Honor (19-1): The Gotham Stakes winner trained by Chad Brown has been working sharply at Belmont. Brown horses often improve with distance, and Iron Honor’s pedigree suggests the Preakness distance suits him well.
• Taj Mahal (20-1): Trained by Brittany Russell, this son of Nyquist has gone 3-for-3 with all three races run at Laurel Park. The home-track advantage is a legitimate factor at a venue most horses are running for the first time.
• Cherokee Nation (22-1): Bob Baffert’s second entry in the race, Cherokee Nation ran in the Santa Anita Derby and gives Baffert a two-pronged approach to the 2026 Preakness.
• Silent Tactic (25-1): Scratched from the Kentucky Derby due to a bruised foot, Silent Tactic’s connections targeted the Preakness as the next major objective. The question is whether the layoff and the physical issue have affected the colt’s form.
• Chip Honcho (25-1): The Gun Runner Stakes winner trained by Steve Asmussen is confirmed for the Preakness. Asmussen horses tend to be well-prepared for graded stakes, and Chip Honcho’s prior form gives him a legitimate if long-shot claim.

Betting Analysis

With Golden Tempo and Renegade — runner-up at the Kentucky Derby — both absent from the Preakness, the 2026 edition sets up as one of the more open renewals in recent years. Crude Velocity at 4-1 is a fair price for a Baffert-trained horse coming into the race fresh, but the distance question is real. The Pat Day Mile is run at one mile, and jumping to 1 3/16 miles on two weeks’ notice is a legitimate ask, even for a talented horse.

Taj Mahal at 20-1 deserves serious consideration for bettors looking for value. Going 3-for-3 at Laurel Park is not a coincidence — it suggests the track suits this horse’s running style, and the unfamiliarity of Laurel’s configuration could work against horses that have never competed there. Trainer Brittany Russell placing her horse at the site ahead of time is a sign of preparation and intent.

Iron Honor represents the class-from-below angle that Chad Brown regularly executes in Triple Crown races. The Gotham Stakes is not the Kentucky Derby, but Brown knows how to spot opportunities in years when the Derby trail clears out some major contenders before the Preakness. For a horse racing betting preview of this race, the combination of a wide-open field and a brand-new venue creates more variance than a typical Preakness, making place and show bets on longshots an appealing secondary strategy alongside any win wagers.

The final field of up to 14 horses will be confirmed after Monday’s draw. Bettors tracking live sports betting odds will want to monitor any morning-line shifts once post positions are announced, as gate assignments can significantly affect pace dynamics in a race of this distance.