In a thrilling showdown at the 151st Preakness Stakes, Napoleon Solo surged to victory, outpacing 13 contenders in the largest field the race has seen in 15 years.
Initially pegged at 8-1 odds, the colt began the race trailing the early favorite, Taj Mahal. However, Napoleon Solo gained momentum, ultimately seizing the lead. This triumph marked jockey Paco Lopez’s first victory at the Preakness, despite it being his second appearance.
Trainer Chad Summers also celebrated his inaugural win at this prestigious event, which featured a lucrative $2 million prize.
Iron Honor started as the morning line favorite with 9-2 odds but shifted to 8-1 by the race’s start.
Taj Mahal initially set a brisk pace, completing the first quarter-mile in 22.66 seconds. Yet, despite his head start, trainer Brittany Russell‘s unbeaten entry was overtaken by Napoleon Solo, who had leveled to 7-1 odds by race time, as they approached the final stretch. Iron Honor made a valiant effort to close the gap but finished 1 1/4 lengths behind.
Coming in third was Chip Honcho, who went off at 10-1 odds.
Iron Honor had been the morning line favorite at 9-2, but he was an 8-1 shot by the time the horses entered the starting gate.
Taj Mahal broke to the lead early and covered the first quarter-mile in 22.66 seconds, but trainer Brittany Russell‘s unbeaten horse couldn’t hold on and was passed by Napoleon Solo, 7-1 by race time, near the top of the stretch. Iron Honor was a threat late but came up 1 1/4 lengths short.
Chip Honcho (1-1) was third.
Napoleon Solo won his first two starts last year by impressive margins, prevailing in the Champagne Stakes by 6 1/2 lengths in October. He couldn’t maintain that form, however, finishing fifth in both the Fountain of Youth and Wood Memorial this year.
Also in the Wood Memorial, two spots farther back, was Iron Honor. Their rematch was for much higher stakes, and Napoleon Solo again finished ahead.
“All year long, fifth place, fifth place. Everyone said he wasn’t as good as he was in the Champagne,” Summers said. “This was a win here. People will say it wasn’t against the best of the best. We’ll find out the rest of the year.”
The three horses who did race in both the Derby and Preakness this year – Ocelli (7-1), Incredibolt (5-1) and Robusta (25-1) – finished fourth, fifth and ninth Saturday.
The second jewel of the Triple Crown was held at Laurel Park in Maryland for the first time due to a major renovation project at Pimlico Race Course, which is expected to be completed next year.
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Although the 1 3/16-mile long race was held a smaller venue, the Run for the Black-Eyed Susans was stacked with horses. The last time 14 horses raced in the Preakness was in 2011, when Shackleford beat Derby winner Animal Kingdom by half a length.
Taj Mahal had run all three of his races at Laurel, which likely played a role as bettors made him the slight favorite over Incredibolt. Russell was trying to become the first female trainer to win the Preakness — two weeks after Cherie DeVaux achieved that milestone at the Derby — but Taj Mahal fell back to 10th after leading much of the way.
This year’s Triple Crown is another without a contender going to the highly coveted achievement because Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo skipped the Preakness Stakes. DeVaux said she wanted to give Golden Tempo “a little more time following such a tremendous effort.”
