Sovereignty skipping Preakness after Kentucky Derby win should lead to change

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14-05-2025

The worst phrase spoken in any language, dialect or accent is, 'This is the way we've always done it.'
Following tradition is fine until it no longer makes sense to continue in the same manner. The Triple Crown is headed for that territory where tradition needs to change.
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Tuesday's news from trainer Bill Mott that Kentucky Derby-winning colt Sovereignty will not participate in the Preakness Stakes is another warning shot to the entire industry.
Something's got to move. Either leave the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes at their current dates and move the Preakness Stakes to July. Or bump the Preakness back to Memorial Day weekend and the Belmont to the Fourth of July.
There will be no Triple Crown pursuit. No potential rematch and budding rivalry with Journalism, who was the betting favorite he beat by 1 ½ lengths. And no way this announcement will help build off the momentum from the 17 million viewers who watched the Derby, which was the biggest audience since 1989, on NBC or streamed on Peacock.
Just hours before the decision was made not to run him, jockey Junior Alvarado, who has been aboard Sovereignty on all three of his victories, was telling The Courier Journal that he was Triple Crown-worthy. But the spacing between races was asking a lot of the horse.
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"Two weeks between races, that's how it's been forever, I understand that, but it takes a toll," Alvarado said. "Horses try hard when you have a horse like mine who has to overcome that much ground and that much of a kick back, it takes a little bit to recover."
Alvarado said he was behind whatever Mott decided because he wanted "to make sure when I get back on Sovereignty in the next race, I want to have the horse I had in the Derby."
Two weeks is cutting it close on recovery time, especially during this critical juncture in horse racing where the safety of horses is at a premium.
After winning Kentucky Derby 150 last year, trainer Kenny McPeek slow-walked whether Mystik Dan would participate in the Preakness, primarily based on the timeline.
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McPeek wasn't afraid of running a horse back quickly; he noted he once did it on just seven days of rest. But Mystik Dan had a lung infection last November after running 13 days between races, and McPeek didn't want to risk that again.
Not even for the Preakness.
Any change to the schedule would have a ripple effect, and that has to be weighed. But it all should be on the table for discussion, and the three racing associations and tracks involved need to be in on the conversation because having the Preakness two weeks after the Kentucky Derby is untenable. This isn't about keeping one race viable, the entire industry stands to benefit from the Triple Crown remaining relevant.
As it stands, four of the last seven Derby winners failed to compete in the second leg of the Triple Crown:
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In 2019, Country House came down with a respiratory infection after being awarded first when Maximum Security was disqualified for interference in the second turn. The son of Lookin At Lucky never ran again after the Derby.
In 2021, Mandaloun skipped the Preakness to rest and didn't race again until June. At the time, trainer Brad Cox said on a National Thoroughbred Racing Association conference call, "We just feel like in the best interest of the horse, to run him back in two weeks is just not the right thing for him."
(Technically, Medina Spirit was still considered the Derby champion during the running of the 2021 Preakness despite having tested positive for the drug betamethasone just six days prior. His disqualification would not become final until February 2022.)
In 2022, Rich Strike trainer Eric Reed opted to keep the Keen Ice colt on the same schedule that helped him win the Derby as an 80-1 long shot. He sat out the Preakness and waited to run in the Belmont Stakes, where he finished sixth.
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It'd taken nearly 40 years for a healthy Derby winner to skip the Preakness. Spend a Buck did in 1985 because of a gimmick promotion that would lead the colt to win a $2 million bonus at Garden State Park in New Jersey.
Horses in this era are no longer bred for three races in five weeks. The 2023 Preakness attracted only Derby winner Mage from the Run for the Roses. Last year, Mystik Dan, Catching Freedom and Just Steel were the only other Derby horses continuing to Pimlico Race Course. This year, only Journalism and American Promise are left considering a run.
The lack of participation speaks volumes.
The Maryland Racing Commission has had previous discussions about moving the Preakness, but so far, it hasn't amounted to anything more than talk. They were considering moving the race back to four weeks after Derby, which would then make it just a week before the Belmont. When the idea was floated publicly in 2023, the New York Racing Association said it had no plans of moving its race.
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The way it's always been done mentality is still winning. Problem is, in actuality, it has not always been done that way.
The Triple Crown didn't fall into its current order of Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes until 1932. So that means for nearly the first 60 years of the races, there wasn't any continuity. Derby ran on the same day as the Preakness or after it 13 times, including a stretch from 1923-31.
Changing the dates won't destroy tradition. Not attracting the best quality in the field of each race will.
Reach sports columnist C.L. Brown at [e-mail], follow him on X at @CLBrownHoops and subscribe to his newsletter at profile.courier-journal.com/newsletters/cl-browns-latest to make sure you never miss one of his columns.
This story was updated to add a video.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky Derby winner skipping Preakness 2025 should lead to change