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Preakness Stakes 2015 Field

By CM Towle

uMay 2, 2015; Louisville, KY, USA; Victor Espinoza aboard American Pharoah celebrates winning the 141st Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports
uMay 2, 2015; Louisville, KY, USA; Victor Espinoza aboard American Pharoah celebrates winning the 141st Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports /
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The 140th Preakness Stakes is set to take place on Saturday, May 16 at Pimlico in Maryland and the field is set.

Barring any late scratches, the 2015 Preakness Stakes field is set for Saturday with a post time of roughly 6:19PM Eastern. The field of eight is quite a bit shorter than the Kentucky Derby field of 18, though it was initially 21 before late scratches. The Preakness field is ready to contest the mile and three-sixteenth distance, which is often more conducive to speed than the Derby. Let’s take a look.

1.American Pharoah is by Pioneerof The Nile, trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Victor Espinoza. He is your Kentucky Derby winner, thus the only horse eligible to win the Triple Crown. He’s also a big favorite as the Derby winner often is, with morning line odds of 4-5. However, he doesn’t have a huge edge over the rest of his rivals, having benefited from perfect trips in his last four. How will he do on the extreme inside?

2.Dortmund is by Big Brown, trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Martin Garcia. He suffered his first defeat in seven lifetime starts in the Kentucky Derby. He’s a speedster who lost an early lead in the Derby. He looks pretty dangerous in the shorter Preakness distance. His morning line odds are 7-2.

3.Mr. Z is by Malibu Moon, trained by D. Wayne Lukas and ridden by Corey Nakatani. Mr. Z almost didn’t make into this race, having been sold to Calumet at the last minute and then entered. He had a troubled trip in the Derby. He also has speed, but appears overmatched. Though no one is likely to forget the Lukas longshot Oxbow winning the 2013 Preakness. Mr. Z’s morning line odds are 20-1.

4.Danzig Moon is by Malibu Moon, trained by Mark Casse and ridden by Julian Leparoux. He finished fifth in the Derby after running into early traffic. Probably not likely to make a whole lot of improvement here. His morning line odds are 15-1.

5.Tale of Verve is by Tale of Ekati, trained by Dallas Stewart and ridden by Joel Rosario. He didn’t qualify for the Derby and for good reason. He’s only won one race in six starts and it was a slow maiden race. His morning line odds are deservedly 30-1.

6.Bodhisattva is by Student Council, trained by Jose Corrales and ridden by Travor McCarthy. This is a Maryland-based colt who recently won the Tesio Stakes at Pimlico. Even his trainer agrees that entering this race is like buying a lottery ticket. His morning line odds are 20-1.

7.Divining Rod is by Tapit, trained by Arnaud Delacour and ridden by Javier Castellano. This is a horse that skipped the Derby after winning the Grade III Coolmore Lexington Stakes at Keeneland. His morning line odds are 12-1.

8.Firing Line is by Line of David, trained by Simon Callaghan and ridden by Gary Stevens. He finished a length behind the winner in the Kentucky Derby after battling with Dortmund. He should be involved here. His morning line odds are 4-1.

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