The 2025 Kentucky Derby is officially in the rear view mirror and the Preakness Stakes is just around the corner. Sovereignty claimed the first jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown and will have a chance to take the second race on May 17 in Baltimore, Maryland at Pimlico Race Course.
As of this article publishing, it’s not clear yet if Sovereignty will race at Pimlico. Odds seem decent the horse will continue its run for the Triple Crown, but trainer Bill Mott tried to temper expectations the morning after the Derby. He said the horse sustained a “minor 4-inch scrape on the outside of his right front pastern (above the hoof).” He told assembled media the team would take some time to figure out the next steps for Sovereignty.
“We want to do what’s best for the horse,” Mott said outside Barn 19 at Churchill Downs on a rainy Sunday morning. “Of course you always think about a Triple Crown, and that’s not something we’re not going to think about. …
“We have to come to a conclusion probably in the next few days, but it’s not going to be this morning.”
This could all just be some gamesmanship, but for now we’re left to wait and see what this means. If Sovereignty elects not to race, it removes a significant amount of mainstream buzz for the race without a horse trying to win the Triple Crown. But if they feel the horse is best suited skipping the Preakness, then they need to do what is best for the horse.
The last time a Derby winner skipped the Preakness was Rich Strike in 2022.
Journalism closed as the favorite to win the Derby, but came up short with a second place showing. He is expected to race at the Preakness, but no official decision has been announced. Third place finisher Baeza is expected to skip the Preakness and prepare for the Belmont Stakes, but trainer John Shirreffs left open a slim possibility that could change.
Seventh-place finisher Sandman is expected to skip the Preakness, while Clever Again, River Thames, and Gosger “were likely for Baltimore.”
Derby contender Rodriguez was a late scratch for that race with the hopes that he would be ready to go for the Preakness.
Which horses are racing at the 2025 Preakness Stakes?
TBD
