Preakness post time: What time does the Preakness Stakes 2018 start?

If you want to catch all the action on Preakness Day, here’s when to tune in.

Because the second jewel of the Triple Crown, the Preakness, is a bit shorter than the Derby, it is run faster. So it’s not really an exciting two minutes in sports, it’s a bit less than that. But that doesn’t mean that coverage is limited to the race itself. As with the Derby, the Preakness Stakes is only one of a full slate of races that day at Pimlico.

Some of the notable races on the undercard are the Dixie Stakes, the Maryland Sprint, and the Very One Handicap. These races serve to anchor a schedule of 13 supporting races, collectively worth about 1.05 million, that will precede the Preakness on race day. The coverage of these races will be aired on NBCSN, similar to the Derby Undercard. Coverage for three starts at 2:30 p.m. ET. While the broadcast will officially be focused on the earlier races, some news/predictions/analysis about the Preakness will come through, along with interviews from the crowd, owners and (maybe) trainers.

The actual Preakness coverage will switch to NBC. Pre-race news etc, specific to the Preakness, begins at 5:00 p.m. ET, and will run until 7 p.m. ET. If you are only interested in the Preakness itself, post time for that race is 6:20 p.m. ET. But at least half the fun of a race like the Preakness is the build up and the background. All of the Triple Crown races are full-day events. This is something of a necessity when the actual event is less that two minutes long.

Coverage will continue on NBC after the race. Reporters will talk to the connections (owners, trainer, Jockey) of the winner, and of other horses in the field. Sure to be included are the second and third place finishers. As well as any real long shot who has a surprising performance, and Justify’s people if he completely chokes.