As should be expected, the Preakness Stakes has its share of restrictions. For example, owners can only nominate their horses to participate if they're willing to pay a nomination fee, which differs depending on when the horse is signed up. Another restriction is that all of the horses must be Thoroughbreds.
Perhaps the most strict restriction, though, is that all horses must be the same age, but with a slight catch. With that in mind, here's a look at everything you need to know about the ages of the horses participating in the Preakness Stakes.
How old are the horses racing in the 151st Preakness Stakes?
The Preakness Stakes is no different from any of the other Triple Crown races. All horses must be three years old to participate — no older, and no younger. Horses can, and do, begin their racing careers before turning three, but they cannot participate in Triple Crown races, including the Preakness Stakes, until they turn three.
To make this process easier, each owner is required to list its horse's birthdate as January 1 of whatever year they're born in. For this year, each horse's birthdate will be listed as January 1, 2026. Having it set up this way guarantees that horses born near January 1 have a clear advantage over horses born later on. It sounds simple and an easy way to keep an even playing field, but that's what makes this age requirement very interesting.
For example, a horse born in January is going to be far more developed by the time they're eligible for the Preakness Stakes than a horse born in, say, August. Both horses are eligible for the same race since they were born in the same year, but the horse born first is sure to be more physically developed, giving that horse a clear physical advantage. That doesn't guarantee anything, but again, it helps, especially when all of these horses already have experience. The one leg up you can have is physical development, and owners do what they can to take advantage of this.
There's a good chance that horses that are actually three years old in this race are up against two-year-olds who are said to be three, because of when said horse was born. It'll be interesting to see if this hidden advantage will come to light in what's sure to be a very close race between 14 incredibly talented "three-year-old" horses.
Add us as a preferred source on Google