Here's Mud In Your Eye: Sovereignty, left, caked with mud, wins decisively over Journalism, far right, as Baeza, center, flies in on Journalism yards from the finish of the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 03, 2025 in Louisville. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) Getty Images At a glance, the Preakness seems to be that somewhat less daunting contest relative to the Kentucky Derby’s larger-than-life rugby scrum and to the Belmont Stakes’ flat racing approximation of marathon. According to this scale, and despite the 150th running bearing a $2-million purse, the Preakness exercises less impact on its athletes. But historically, exactly that distant, cliched view of the race is the point on which many hundreds of horsemen and their athletes have made a mistake. It’s the Preakness’ sharp two-week post-Derby timing that delivers such a knockout blow to the athletes. Put differently, there are short run-backs throughout Thoroughbred racing. Then, for the horses that have run in the Kentucky Derby, there is the Preakness. But before we dive headlong into whether Journalism actually has the moxie to win this, or either, of the remaining Triple Crown races, here, a hard look at the field, the post positions and Pimlico’s morning line odds. Post Position, Horse, Trainer, Jockey, Morning Line Goal Oriented, Bob Baffert, Flavien Prat, 6-1 Journalism, Michael McCarthy, Umberto Rispoli, 8-5 American Promise, D. Wayne Lukas, Nik Juarez, 15-1 Heart of Honor, Jamie Osborne, Saffie Osborne, 12-1 Pay Billy, Michael Gorham, Raul Mena, 20-1 River Thames, Todd Pletcher, Irad Ortiz Jr., 9-2 Sandman, Mark Casse, John Velazquez, 4-1 Clever Again, Steve Asmussen, Jose Ortiz, 5-1 Gosger, Brendan Walsh, Luis Saez, 20-1 (Source: Pimlico, 5/12/2025) That top favorite Journalism drew the two-hole does not seem to be hurting his favorite status at 8-5 in the nine-horse field, while Sandman, Mark Casse trained and breaking from post position seven, and with a flat 4-1 morning line, is the field’s second-favorite. Young gunslinger River Thames, whose owners elected to give him time after running third in the Blue Grass and thus skipped the Derby, trained by none other than Todd Pletcher, seems to be getting a bit of his own back in the eyes of the Pimlico oddsmakers as the third-favorite in the race at 9-2. The point is that the exigencies of the Preakness and its tough placement within the Triple Crown demands that the fresh horses be looked at freshly and that the Derby horses be thrown a little shade. Managing nobly to hold on to his place showing in the Derby, Journalism had what we might describe as a rough last furlong in the Churchill mud, first losing his lead to a surprisingly powerful Sovereignty, and then almost losing his place showing to an onrushing Baeza. Was he really fading, or were they just that good? It remains a question for him, especially in light of that effort lying just those short two weeks back. Editorial StandardsForbes Accolades