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Napoleon Solo took home the 2026 Preakness Stakes on Saturday, the 151st running of the race.
The race was run without the Kentucky Derby winner for the second consecutive year. After Sovereignty didn’t run the Preakness last year – and ended up winning the Belmont Stakes – Golden Tempo’s training team opted to skip the Maryland race.
From 1960 to 2018, only three Derby winners did not run in the Preakness. Three Derby winners have skipped the Preakness in the last five years, and for the sixth time in eight years, for various reasons, the Triple Crown had already been impossible to achieve by the time the Preakness arrived.
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A Preakness-branded starting gate is seen on the track before the 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park on May 16, 2026 in Laurel, Maryland. For the first and only time, Laurel Park will host the Preakness Stakes, which is the second race of the jewel of the Triple Crown because the traditional venue of the race, Pimlico Race Course, is under complete renovation. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
“I understand that sports fans or Triple Crown fans are disappointed, but the horse is not a machine,” Golden Tempo trainer Cherie DeVaux told Pak Gazette Digital earlier this week.
Only three horses from two weeks ago: Ocelli, Robusta and Incredibolt returned to the Preakness. Golden Crown, the No. 11 horse on Saturday, was eliminated well ahead of the Derby, and Great White, who reared and fell on his back after being startled shortly before entering the Derby gate, took 13th on Saturday.
A general view of the helmets resting on the gate before the Sir Barton Shots at Laurel Park. (Mandatory credit: Amber Searls/Imagn Images)
CHERIE DEVAUX REFLECTS ON MAKING KENTUCKY DERBY HISTORY AS THE FIRST FEMALE COACH TO WIN THE RACE
The Preakness began approximately 24 hours after a horse died after completing its first race.
Hit Zero, trained by Brittany Russell, came into the race as the favorite. However, he finished last in the race, which was won by another of Russell’s horses, Bold Fact, and as he crossed the finish line, Hit Zero reportedly began coughing, fell to his knees, then hung his head and died.
The Preakness was held at Laurel Park while Pimlico undergoes renovations. It was the first time that Pimlico did not host the race, moving approximately 20 miles south.
Horses parade in front of the paddock before a preliminary race before the 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park on May 16, 2026, in Laurel, Maryland. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
The Belmont Stakes, the final race of the Triple Crown, will take place on June 6. The race will return to Saratoga for the third consecutive year as Belmont Park continues to be renovated.
