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Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Preakness 2025 recap, winnings: Favorite Journalism surges to win after falling short in Kentucky Derby
Journalism paid off at the 2025 Preakness Stakes on Saturday. The race favorite, going off at even odds, fought his way to an incredible win at Pimlico, surging from multiple lengths behind in the last half-mile to win by a nose. Longshot Gosger placed in a two-horse finish. Journalism was the favorite at the Kentucky Derby as well and seemed poised to win when he made a move from the outside about two-thirds into the race. His trainer and jockey apparently opted for a similar strategy at the Preakness, making a move toward the outside but having to improvise when he got blocked. Advertisement Jockey Umberto Rispoli opted to move from the inside again, and even got squeezed before two horses before running down Gosger in the final stretch. It was a bumpy trip to the front, but Journalism got there just in time. Anticipation for the race was deflated when Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty was ruled out shortly after its triumph at Churchill Downs, ending any possibility for a Triple Crown after one race. It has been seven years since Justified the last Triple Crown, with no horses winning even two of the races in a single year. This was the second time in the past four years the Derby winner opted out of the short two-week turnaround time between races, with Sovereignty joining Rich Strike in 2022. Here's how the whole 2025 Preakness Stakes went down at Yahoo Sports:
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
NBC Faces Preakness Dip as Racing Mulls Rest and Triple Crown Reset
Three days after Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby, the thoroughbred's owners announced they would skip the Preakness Stakes with a plan to compete in the Belmont Stakes on June 7. While the extra rest might improve the colt's odds for a win, it eliminates the potential of a Triple Crown winner this year—as well as the advertising impressions of millions of casual racing fans. 'Load management' has crept into modern horse racing as more owners and trainers seek between five and six weeks of rest for their top horses between the highest profile races. It is a less than ideal scenario for NBC, which holds rights to the Derby and the Preakness. (Fox will broadcast the Belmont.) Advertisement More from Sovereignty's win at this year's Derby telecast pulled in 17.7 million viewers, a total that includes out-of-home viewing and is the best since 1989. NBC hit a record peak audience of 21.8 million, which was 8% better than last year. A year without a Triple Crown contender usually costs the network about 2 million viewers. Two Kentucky Derby winners have skipped the Preakness in the last two decades, and fans tuned out. Country House didn't race in 2019, and NBC pulled in a total audience of 5.41 million viewers. That was a 32% decline compared to the year prior when Derby winner Justify drew 7.94 million viewers to the second leg of his Triple Crown triumph. Advertisement In 2022, surprise Derby winner Rich Strike was held out of the Preakness and just 5.3 million people tuned in for Early Voting's win. That number was a 24% dip from the 2021 race when 7 million tuned in to see Medina Spirit finish third. (Medina Spirit would later have his Derby win overturned for a banned substance.) Despite the ratings ebb and flow for the Preakness, brands tend not to sweat the numbers as most of the ad inventory in the Preakness is sold before the Derby. According to data, the Kentucky Derby averages around 327 million ad impressions, including this year's near-record 362 million. The Preakness and Belmont have smaller ad impression pools of 131 million and 56 million, respectively, over the last three years. The lack of a Triple Crown contender at the Preakness has stirred up debate over its scheduling. Some people in the horse racing community advocate for the Preakness to run later in the spring, with the idea of giving contending horses more recovery time after running the Derby. Advertisement There's also the TV and advertising angle; a Triple Crown contender brings more casual viewers to the Preakness, but only if it's in good condition to run. Randy Moss, NBC Sports' longtime horse racing analyst—and not the Pro Football of Fame receiver—has been sounding the alarm about the Triple Crown losing its luster over the last 15 years because of the lack of rest between races. 'Three races in five weeks was once not only considered acceptable, but trainers often gave horses a race between the Preakness and Belmont, and sometimes even between the Derby and Preakness,' Moss said in an email. 'But trainers believe today's horses are not as robust and durable as the horses of yesteryear and that a two-week turnaround is counterproductive to their health.' In other words, Sovereignty is no Smarty Jones, the 2004 Derby winner who won the Preakness by a record margin of 11 ½ lengths two weeks later. The race at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md., garnered 11.6 million viewers, and it remains the biggest Preakness audience of the past 25 years. Undefeated at the time, Smarty Jones had the best chance of a Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978, but he came one length short of first at the Belmont. (American Pharoah won the crown in 2015, followed by Justify three years later.) Advertisement Moss thinks that thoroughbred racing is long overdue for the single change that could make the Triple Crown a watershed moment in sports again. 'All businesses and sports that refuse to adapt to changing circumstances are doomed to fail,' he said. 'The solution for thoroughbred racing is fortunately a simple one: extend the time between the Triple Crown races. And three weeks won't be enough. Four or even five weeks between races is the answer. Then the Triple Crown can get back to what it once was: the best 3-year-olds squaring off in all three races.' Even without Sovereignty, NBC is leaning on another longtime narrative for the Preakness; the rivalry between trainers Bob Baffert and D. Wayne Lukas. Baffert holds the most wins at the Preakness with eight, while Lukas has seven. As part of the 150th anniversary of the Preakness, the network filmed a talk between the two trainers, Moss and Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey about the trainers' rivalry and their relationship. NBC is hoping that the rivalry will help create the allure of history as much as the horses do themselves. Advertisement Best of Sign up for Sportico's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
When is the 2025 Preakness? Date, time, horses, post positions, will Sovereignty run and everything else to know
It may not be the Kentucky Derby, but the Preakness Stakes still holds a special place in horse racing. This year will mark the 150th edition of the prestigious race, which saw Seize the Day take home the win in 2024. Who will take home the victory in 2025? Here's everything you need to know about the Preakness Stakes, including its date, time and whether 2025 Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty will take part in the race. When is the 2025 Preakness Stakes? The 2025 Preakness Stakes will take place Saturday, May 17 at 7:01 p.m. ET. Advertisement That's typical for the event, which takes place annually on the third Saturday in May. The Preakness Stakes is typically run at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The race is named after a horse that won a race at Pimlico on the day it opened in 1870. Will Sovereignty run in the 2025 Preakness? There will be no Triple Crown winner in 2025. Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty will not take part in the 2025 Preakness. Sovereignty's trainer, Bill Mott, said the horse will skip the race to focus on the Belmont Stakes. Sovereignty is the second horse in the past four years to win the Kentucky Derby, but skip the Preakness Stakes. Rich Strike did the same thing after winning the 2022 Kentucky Derby. Rich Strike finished sixth out of eight horses in the Belmont Stakes. Advertisement A total of 13 horses have won the Triple Crown, the most recent of which was Justified, which won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes in 2018. 2025 Preakness Stakes horses, post positions and odds Below is a list of every horse taking part in the 2025 Preakness Stakes. They are listed in order of post position. Goal Oriented (6-1) Journalism (8-5) American Promise (15-1) Heart of Honor (12-1) Pay Billy (20-1) River Thames (9-2) Sandman (4-1) Clever Again (5-1) Gosger (20-1) Journalism — which was the favorite to win the 2025 Kentucky Derby — will serve as the favorite for the 2025 Preakness Stakes. Journalism finished as the runner-up to Sovereignty at the 2025 Kentucky Derby. A high of 91 degrees is expected in Baltimore on Saturday. It's possible a stray storm of thunderstorm could hit earlier in the day, which could effect the race. The temperature will drop to 67 degrees by night time, so it should be a comfortable temperature when the horses get into their post positions. Preakness Stakes 2025 payout, purse The purse at the 2024 Preakness Stakes was $2 million, the highest figure in the race's history. Seize the Grey received $1.2 million of that purse after winning the event in 2024. Advertisement The purse should be similar — if not higher — ahead of the 2025 Preakness Stakes. By comparison, the 2025 Kentucky Derby had a total purse of $5 million, with roughly $3.1 million expected to go to the winner. Does Bob Baffert have a horse in the 2025 Preakness Stakes? Controversial horse trainer Bob Baffert will have a horse in the 2025 Preakness Stakes. Baffert is the trainer for Goal Oriented, which will run out of the No. 1 post position Saturday. Goal Oriented did not run in the 2025 Kentucky Derby. Baffert was expected to have two horses in the 2025 Kentucky Derby, but that figure fell to one after Rodriguez was scratched from the event. Baffert's other horse, Citizen Bull, finished 15th at the 2025 Kentucky Derby. Who is performing at the 2025 Preakness Stakes? Following the 2025 Preakness Stakes, T-Pain will perform at the event. Jack Harlow headlined the post-race concert in 2024. How to watch the 2025 Preakness Stakes Preakness Stakes coverage will begin on CNBC early Saturday, but will wind up on NBC and Peacock by 4 p.m. ET. That should give fans a few hours of coverage and analysis ahead of the race's 7:01 p.m. ET start time. Mike Tirico is expected to serve as the host for the coverage after missing the Kentucky Derby due to a peanut allergy.
South China Morning Post
08-05-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Why are Kentucky Derby winners skipping Preakness, chance for Triple Crown?
Sovereignty, which won the Kentucky Derby on May 3, will not compete at Preakness, forgoing the chance to win the Triple Crown. Photo: TNS Sovereignty will be the fifth Derby champion in seven years to miss the event in Baltimore Just a few days after winning the Kentucky Derby, Sovereignty was ruled out of running in the Preakness Stakes. It is the second time in four years the owner and trainer of the Derby champion opted to skip the Preakness in favour of the Belmont Stakes in June. Rich Strike also bypassed the Preakness in 2022 after winning at Churchill Downs at odds of 80-1. Country House did not run in 2019 because of illness after getting elevated to Derby winner when Maximum Security was disqualified for interference, the races were run out of order in 2020, and Medina Spirit ran and finished third in the 2021 Preakness after being disqualified from his first-place finish in the Derby for a positive drug test. That means this is the fifth time in seven years that the Preakness gates open at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore without even a chance of a Triple Crown being won. That had happened only once in the previous 33 years from 1986 to 2018, and that was because a horse was retired because of injury after taking the Run for the Roses. Why is this happening? Horse racing has changed from its heyday, when stars of the sport such as War Admiral, Secretariat and Seattle Slew were used to running every couple of weeks. Breeding, money and other factors have changed that, and the top three-year-old horses eligible for the Triple Crown race far less often, with bigger stretches in between. 'Most trainers hate running their horses back in two weeks,' NBC Sports analyst Randy Moss said. 'They feel like it's bad for the horses.' Beginning in the early 21st century, many of the Derby horses who finish between second and 20th started getting more rest as they wait five weeks for the Belmont. It was essentially automatic that the Derby winner would go, though not any more. 'The trainers of Derby winners that do run back in the Preakness do it out of a sense of tradition – not because they like it,' Moss said. Sovereignty's Bill Mott made that clear the morning after his horse passed Journalism down the stretch in the mud at Churchill Downs with a record audience watching, casting doubt on the Preakness. 'We want to do what's best for the horse,' Mott told reporters in Louisville, Kentucky on Sunday. 'Of course, you always think about a Triple Crown, and that's not something we're not going to think about.' Does something need to change? The debate has been raging for decades about horses not being able to handle the grind of three premier races over a span of five weeks. That was primarily because no one swept the Triple Crown between Affirmed in 1978 and American Pharoah in 2015, a 37-year drought that made industry stakeholders question tradition versus modern-day changes. Justify doing it in 2018 to give the sport a pair of Triple Crown champions in four years quieted that talk. The recent uncertainty about Derby winners going to the Preakness reignited the chatter. Prominent owner Mike Repole shared a proposal on social media on Tuesday that would move the Belmont up to second in the rotation and shift the Preakness back to provide more spacing. Others have suggested moving the Preakness back to the first Saturday in June and the Belmont to the first Saturday in July. What is the solution? No one really knows. And do there need to be seismic changes like the pitch clock in baseball? After all, the previous two Derby winners – Mystik Dan last year and Mage in 2023 – wheeled back after two weeks to finish in the money at the Preakness. They did not win, but their trainers wanted to give it a shot. And Bob-Baffert-trained American Pharoah and Justify completing the Triple Crown showed it was possible. 'We'll see Triple Crown winners because there will occasionally be horses like American Pharoah and like Justify who are good enough to blow up any of the current thoughts about spacing,' Moss said. And trainers who are not worried about it. Baffert and 89-year-old fellow Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas have shown a willingness to go for it after winning the Derby – and even when they do not. Lukas intends to run American Promise in the Preakness after a 16th place finish in Kentucky. Others have chosen to play it more safely, and if that becomes the trend, it puts the future of the Preakness in peril.
CBS News
07-05-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
No Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty in Preakness highlights some philosophical horse racing changes
Just a few days after winning the Kentucky Derby, Sovereignty was ruled out of running in the Preakness Stakes, at Baltimore's Historic Pimlico Race Course. It is the second time in four years the owner and trainer of the Derby champion opted to skip the Preakness in favor of the Belmont Stakes in June. Rich Strike also bypassed the Preakness in 2022 after winning at Churchill Downs at odds of 80-1. Country House did not run in 2019 because of illness after getting elevated to Derby winner when Maximum Security was disqualified for interference, the races were run out of order in 2020 and Medina Spirit ran and finished third in the 2021 Preakness after being DQed from his first-place finish in the Derby for a positive drug test. That means this is the fifth time in seven years that the Preakness gates open at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore without even a chance at a Triple Crown. That was only the case once in the previous 33 years from to 1986 2018, and that happened because a horse was retired because of injury after taking the Run for the Roses. Why is this happening? Horse racing has changed from its heyday, when stars of the sport like War Admiral, Secretariat, and Seattle Slew were used to running every couple of weeks. Breeding, money and other factors have changed that, and the top 3-year-old horses eligible for the Triple Crown race far less often, with bigger stretches in between. "Most trainers hate running their horses back in two weeks," NBC Sports analyst Randy Moss said. "They feel like it's bad for the horses." Beginning in the early 21st century, many of the Derby horses who finish between second and 20th started getting more rest to wait five weeks for the Belmont. It was essentially automatic that the Derby winner would go, though not anymore. "The trainers of Derby winners that do run back in the Preakness do it out of a sense of tradition — not because they like it," Moss said. Sovereignty's Bill Mott made that clear the morning after his horse passed Journalism down the stretch in the mud at Churchill Downs with a record audience watching, casting doubt on the Preakness. "We want to do what's best for the horse," Mott told reporters in Louisville, Kentucky, on Sunday. "Of course, you always think about a Triple Crown, and that's not something we're not going to think about." Does something need to change? The debate has been raging for decades about horses not being able to handle the grind of three premier races over a span of five weeks. That was primarily because no one swept the Triple Crown between Affirmed in 1978 and American Pharoah in 2015, a 37-year drought that made industry stakeholders question tradition versus modern-day changes. Justify doing it in 2018 to give the sport a pair of Triple Crown champions in four years quieted that talk. The recent uncertainty about Derby winners going to the Preakness reignited the chatter. Prominent owner Mike Repole shared a proposal on social media Tuesday that would move the Belmont up to second in the rotation and shift the Preakness back to provide more spacing. Others have suggested moving the Preakness back to the first Saturday in June and the Belmont to the first Saturday in July. What is the solution? No one really knows. And does there need to be seismic change like the pitch clock in baseball? Maybe, maybe not. After all, the previous two Derby winners — Mystik Dan last year and Mage in 2023 — wheeled back after two weeks to finish in the money at the Preakness. They didn't win, but their trainers wanted to give it a shot. And Bob Baffert-trained American Pharoah and Justify completing the Triple Crown showed it was possible. "We'll see Triple Crown winners because there will occasionally be horses like American Pharoah and like Justify who are good enough to blow up any of the current thoughts about spacing," Moss said. And trainers who aren't worried about it. Baffert and 89-year-old fellow Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas have shown a willingness to go for it after winning the Derby — and even when they don't. Lukas intends to run American Promise in the Preakness after a 16th-place finish in Kentucky. Others have chosen to play it safer, which, if that becomes the trend, puts the future of the Preakness in peril.
