The 151st Preakness Stakes took place on Saturday, May 16, 2026, at Laurel Park in Maryland instead of its traditional Pimlico venue due to ongoing renovations, marking the first time since 1908 the race was held elsewhere [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. The race began at 6:50 p.m. ET and covered 1 3/16 miles, with a purse of $2 million [1, 3, 6, 5].
Fourteen horses contested the event, but Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo did not run [1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 6, 8, 9]. Only three horses from the Kentucky Derby field participated: Ocelli, Incredibolt, and a third horse named either Robusta or Great White, according to differing sources [9, 10].
Iron Honor entered as the betting favorite with odds around 9-2 and was closely watched by the racing community [1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 6, 8, 9, 11, 10, 5]. Other leading contenders at 5-1 included Taj Mahal, Chip Honcho, and Incredibolt, while Ocelli held 6-1 odds [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 10, 5].
Taj Mahal, trained by Brittany Russell, started from the inside rail. He came into the race undefeated with three wins at Laurel Park under his belt [1, 2, 3, 7, 6, 9, 10]. Horse racing expert Michelle Yu favored Taj Mahal over Iron Honor, noting, "This undefeated Brittany Russell trainee is certainly a horse for the course, having notched all three lifetime wins over this track. He isn't inching out these wins; he's winning going away. A woman won the Derby; maybe one wins the Preakness too?" [1, 9]
Gene Menez, another expert, also doubted Iron Honor's chances, citing the favorite's poor finish in the 2026 Wood Memorial [4, 8, 11, 5]. Historically, 12 Preakness winners have started from the inside post, lending some optimism for Taj Mahal at that position [6, 9, 10].
Post time for the race was 6:50 p.m. ET on May 16, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 11, 5]. The next major event in the Baltimore area was the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes held the day before, with Gene Menez releasing picks on May 15 [12].
