By STEPHEN WHYNO
BALTIMORE — Journalism gained the one hundred and fiftieth operating of the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, coming from behind down the stretch to make good on the lofty expectations of being the odds-on favourite within the center leg of the Triple Crown two weeks after ending second to Sovereignty within the Kentucky Derby.
Ending first in a discipline of 9 horses that didn’t embody Sovereignty however featured a number of the greatest competitors within the nation, Journalism gave coach Michael McCarthy his second Preakness victory. It’s Umberto Rispoli’s first in a Triple Crown race, and he’s the primary jockey from Italy to win considered one of them.
Gosger was second by a half-length after getting handed by Journalism simply earlier than the wire. Sandman was third and Objective Oriented fourth. Journalism went 1 3/16 miles in 1:55.37.
Journalism thrived on a heat day that dried out the observe after torrential rain fell at Pimlico Race Course for a lot of the previous week. These situations suited him higher than the slop at Churchill Downs within the Derby.
Sovereignty didn’t participate after his house owners and coach Invoice Mott determined to skip the Preakness, citing the two-week turnaround, and aimed for the Belmont on June 7. That made this a fifth time in seven years that the Preakness, for varied causes, was contested with out a Triple Crown bid at stake.
However Journalism staked his declare for 3-year-old horse of the 12 months by profitable the $2 million American traditional race run on the outdated Pimlico Race Course for the final time earlier than it’s torn down and rebuilt. The Preakness is ready to be held at close by Laurel Park, between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., subsequent 12 months earlier than a deliberate return to the brand new Pimlico in 2027.
Journalism is the primary horse to win the Preakness after operating within the Kentucky Derby since Mark Casse-trained Conflict of Will in 2019. Solely two others from the 19 within the Derby participated within the Preakness: Casse’s Sandman and fellow Corridor of Famer D. Wayne Lukas’ American Promise.
Lukas, the 89-year-old who has saddled essentially the most horses in Preakness historical past, referred to McCarthy as soon as this week as “the new guy.” This was simply McCarthy’s second, and he’s 2 for two after Rombauer sprung the upset as an 11-1 lengthy shot in 2021.
