In Close Race, National Treasure Wins Preakness Stakes

Earlier this month, Mage won the Kentucky Derby, making the first time Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano won the race in question. Weeks later, it was time for another installment of the Triple Crown to be run, and this time another Hall of Fame inductee emerged victorious in a race they had never previously won. This time, it was John Velazquez’s turn, riding National Treasure to victory — Velazquez’s first time winning the Preakness Stakes.

For much of the home stretch, National Treasure and Blazing Sevens were neck-and-neck, with Mage finishing third.

As reported by ESPN, National Treasure’s victory was the eighth time a horse trained by Bob Baffert had won the Preakness. Earlier in the day, another one of the horses he’d trained, Havnameltdown, was euthanized in the wake of a fetlock injury. Baffert was suspended from last year’s Preakness following Medina Spirit’s Kentucky Derby win and subsequent disqualification.

Mage’s Kentucky Derby Win Was a First for Jockey and Trainer Alike

He began the day with 15-1 odds

Baffert is now the trainer with the most Preakness wins in history. As ESPN reported, he had previously been tied with R. Wyndham Walden with seven wins each. The third leg of the Triple Crown is scheduled for Saturday, June 10 — another occasion for records to be broken or controversies to develop.