2019 Preakness Stakes: Two heavy favorites lead the field

After the most controversial Kentucky Derby in recent memory, horse racing is right back in the spotlight once again. On Saturday May 18, from the Pimlico race course in Baltimore, Maryland, the 2019 Preakness Stakes takes centre stage with $1.5 million in purse money up for grabs.

At this point, three horses lead the Preaknes Stakes betting lines:

• Alwaysmining +800
• Bourbon War +800
• Win Win Win +800

But before we handicap the upcoming race, we need to talk briefly about the Mint Julep bowl, I mean the Kentucky Derby. Online betting almost compels you to tune in. And if you had to withstand the endless pre race coverage on television like I did, you were probably just as confused as me. If they didn't cut to live shots of the horses occasionally I would have thought I was watching the Met Gala.

After their fill of rich celebrities in fancy outfits and Bourbon recipes the broadcasters finally got to "the most exciting two minutes in sports". Maximum Security at 9/2 odds, one of the favorites, pretty much led wire to wire to win the Kentucky Derby.

Except he didn't. Moments after the race he was disqualified for bumping two horses at some point during the 1 and 1/4 mile gallop. Maximum Security was stripped of the garland of roses and Country House at an eye popping 65/1 price, the original runner up won the 2019 Kentucky Derby.

Needless to say, this drew alot of attention from the eyes, ears, and twitter fingers of the sporting world. In this day and age, however, controversy and scandal are what moves the needle, so this may ultimately draw more eyes to horse racing which can only be good for the industry.

See below the top sportsbooks where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:

2019 Preakness Stakes odds 

ODDS PROVIDED COURTESY OF WILLIAM HILL

However the following is not good for the industry. The 2019 Preakness will be a somewhat unprecedented for the fact that Country House, the Kentucky Derby winner, will not be participating in the event, eliminating any chance of a triple crown winner this year. This has not occured since 1996, and it is due to health concerns, as Country House has come down with a cough.

Furthermore, Maximum Security, suffered abrasions to his hind legs during the Kentucky derby and will also miss the Preakness. 

With this important news, Preakness Vegas Odds are now available and War of Will, one of the horses that Maximum Security impeded during the race, has opened up at +300. The overall betting favorite however is Improbable at +200.

Improbable finished 4th in the Kentucky Derby while War of Will finished 7th.

Here are the other contenders in the field:

• Alwaysmining +800
• Bourbon War +800
• Win Win Win +800
• Anothertwistafate +1200
• Owendale +1200
• Signalman +1400
• Bodexpress +1600
• Laughing Fox +2000

What you need to know about The Preakness

What you need to know is that it's almost identical to the Kentucky Derby logistically. They are both run on dirt tracks and are almost identical in distance. The Kentucky Derby is a 10 furlong race (1.25 miles) while the Preakness is 1/16 of a mile shorter at 9.5 furlongs.

This will be the 144th running of the Preakness.

Predictions

Here is why Improbable is such a heavy favorite to win. The horse's owner, Bob Baffert, has picked up Jockey Mike Smith to race his horse on May 18. The two gentleman teamed up last year to win Triple Crown with Justify, meaning they won this very event just last year.

Baffert is a prolific trainer who also won the Triple Crown in 2015 with American Pharoah. Furthermore 7 of Baffert's horses have won the Preakness. We are talking about a prolific horse trainer. Betting against him at this point is like betting against the Patriots.

However, talent wise War of Will is basically a toss up with Improbale. The other issue is that when heavy favorites win, it's hard to get good value. However the world of horse racing offers many ways to extract value in such instances and I have a particular one in mind for the Preakness that I'm going to implement.

It's what's referred to as an exacta bet, where I can pick the 1st and 2nd place horse in any order of finish and get paid an implied price based on getting multiple wagers correct.

PICK: Box WAR OF WILL and IMPROBABLE in an Exacta

You can follow me on twitter @zahir_gilani

Category : Online Betting News

Tag : Horse Racing , horse racing odds , Horse Racing Picks , Preakness Stakes Odds , Preakness Stakes Picks

More articles...