Keepin' It Real

Preakness Racing Tips
By Danny B Sports

American Pharoah will look to become the 35th Kentucky Derby winner to capture the Preakness Stakes when he takes on seven others in the second jewel of the Triple Crown at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. on Saturday.

Position	Horse	Morning Line
1	American Pharoah	4-5
2	Dortmund	7-2
3	Mr. Z	20-1
4	Danzig Moon	15-1
5	Tale of Verve	30-1
6	Bodhisattva	20-1
7	Divining Rod	14-1
8	Firing Line	4-1

The Preakness has attracted just eight entrants this year, the fewest since 2000. Five horses that ran in the Kentucky Derby, including four of the top five finishers, will also make a start in the Preakness, while three new shooters have entered the fray. Here are three things you need to know about Saturday's race.

Can American Pharoah double up?

American Pharoah used a stalking trip to his advantage in the Kentucky Derby, as he tracked front-runner and eventual third-place finisher Dortmund all the way around the track before taking the lead from Firing Line in the final stages. With a wide position in the starting gate, jockey Victor Espinoza kept American Pharoah along the outside and in the clear the entire race, and as a result, American Pharoah covered the most ground of any horse in the Kentucky Derby with the exception of fourth place finisher Frosted, according to Trakus.
In the Preakness, Espinoza may not have the luxury of keeping American Pharoah in a stalking position in the clear on the outside, however. American Pharoah has drawn the rail for Saturday's race and Espinoza may be forced to gun out for the early lead to avoid being boxed in by other horses.
Kentucky Derby runner-up, Firing Line, and Dortmund are back and will give American Pharoah a stiff test once again. American Pharoah proved himself in the Kentucky Derby and should have every opportunity to do it again in the Preakness to keep the Triple Crown dream alive.

Can a new shooter spring the upset?

Just three horses in this Preakness field did not run in the Kentucky Derby, and perhaps the one with the best chance to upset American Pharoah is Divining Rod.
Divining Rod ran the best race of his career in his last start in the Lexington Stakes at Keeneland on April 11, where he rated off of the lead before going on to a three-length victory. He will start from post seven in the Preakness, which should allow him to stay close to the early pace and be in the clear to make his run. Whether or not he can compete with the likes of American Pharoah, Firing Line and Dortmund is a major question he will have to answer.
The other two new shooters to the Preakness field are Tale of Verve and Bodhisattva, both of who are huge longshots in this race.

Mr. Z a surprise entrant

Mr. Z ran 13th in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs two weeks ago and was not considered a Preakness probable until Wednesday when he was privately purchased by Calumet Farm. Mr. Z was previously owned by Zayat Stables, who also own Kentucky Derby winner American Pharoah, and it's possible that he was not being pointed to the Preakness in order to make a Triple Crown run a little easier for his former stablemate.
Trainer D. Wayne Lukas must have seen something he liked in Mr. Z, and it's tough to go against Lukas in the Preakness Stakes. Lukas has won the Preakness six times and could match R. Wyndham Walden's record of seven Preakness wins by a trainer if Mr. Z can find a way to the winner's circle on Saturday. Owner Calumet Farm has won the Preakness a record seven times while Lukas and Calumet Farm combined to win the Preakness in 2013 with Oxbow.
Mr. Z had a troubled beginning in the Kentucky Derby and ran tough against the likes of Firing Line and Dortmund in Los Alamitos Futurity in December. He has the most racing experience of any of the contenders, as the Preakness will mark his 14th career start, but it will take quite an improvement to get the job done on Saturday.

The pick

Expect the top three finishers from the Kentucky Derby - American Pharoah, Firing Line and Dortmund - to run big once again in the Preakness Stakes, and we think American Pharoah will get the chance to head to the Belmont Stakes with the Triple Crown on the line.