2019 Preakness Stakes Betting Odds, TV Schedule, Entry List & Preview

The 144th running of the Preakness Stakes is set for Saturday, May 18, at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the second leg of the Triple Crown — although there will not be a Triple Crown winner this year, as the Kentucky Derby champion, Country House, has been withdrawn from the Preakness due to a virus. The distance at the Preakness Stakes is 1 3/16 miles, 1/16 shorter than the Kentucky Derby. We have the field, the preliminary 2019 Preakness Stakes betting odds, the viewing schedule as well as a horse racing betting preview for this race.

2019 Preakness Stakes Betting Odds, TV Schedule, Entry List & Preview

5 days until #Preakness144…The paintwork continues atop @PimlicoRC‘s infield cupola, where each year, since 1909, the five feet wide weather vane is painted in the winning owner’s silks. pic.twitter.com/NjxKsNQfUo

— Preakness Stakes (@PreaknessStakes) May 13, 2019

Television Schedule

• Pre-Race Coverage: 2:30 – 5:00pm Eastern time, NBC Sports
• Main Coverage: 5:00 – 7:15pm Eastern time, NBC
• Post Time: 6:48pm Eastern time (NBC)
• Streaming: NBC Sports app / fuboTV

Preliminary Entry List with Odds to Win the 2019 Preakness Stakes

• Improbable                                                                              2/1
• War of Will                                                                              3/1
• Alwaysmining, Win Win Win                                                   8/1
• Bourbon War, Owendale                                                           10/1
• Anothertwistafate                                                                     12/1
• Signalman                                                                                14/1
• Bodexpress, Warrior’s Charge                                                   16/1
• Laughing Fox, Market King                                                      20/1

The field this year is wide open, as along with Country House, Maximum Security, Code of Honor and Tacitus will all miss the Preakness. This is the first time since 1951 that none of the first four finishers at the Kentucky Derby will compete in the Preakness Stakes. Maximum Security’s owner indicated that, since it was not possible for his horse to win the Triple Crown, the two-week layoff between Churchill Downs and Pimlico was too short to risk the turnaround. This leaves Improbable as the favorite right now. He finished fifth at the Kentucky Derby, and at the Grade I Arkansas Derby and at the Rebel at Oaklawn Park, he finished as the runner-up. He is one of the horses that Bob Baffert has trained, which elevates him in the eyes of bettors. He will have Mike Smith riding him at Pimlico. There are a few things that you need to remember before putting down money on the Preakness Stakes. The first is that horse racing is parimutuel betting — in other words, you are not betting against the house, but against other bettors. The house takes a percentage off the top. Odds can shift after you make your bet, depending on how the money moves, which is another difference between this type of wager and moneyline betting. So it makes sense to wait until the post positions are drawn on Wednesday before locking in wagers. The inside and outside positions can be difficult to win from, because of crowding at the rail and the sheer difficulty of moving to the inside from the far right. Also, you’ll want to get a clearer sense of the weather for Saturday; when rain is part of the equation, the field gets sloppy, which can make it difficult for horses to get the quick start that they want. There are a number of ways that you can wager on horse racing as well. You can pick a horse to win, obviously, but the options of win, place and show (first, second and third places) allow you to wager on a horse to finish on the podium and still win, although your payout is reduced due to the increased number of options. You can also pick ordering finish with the exacta (first and second), trifecta (first, second and third) and superfecta (first, second, third and fourth), and if you hit it right, you can walk away with a huge payout. We’ll have an article later this week about our exacta, trifecta and superfecta picks for this race. So between now and Wednesday, stay tuned to the news coming from Pimlico, particularly with regard to post position, any late entries (or scratches) for the race, and the latest weather updates.