2008 Preakness Stakes Predictions
June 9, 2008
Before making your 2008 Preakness Stakes picks and predictions, you must first take a look at the 13-horse field assembled to take part at Pimlico Raceway in Maryland. Two horses, Big Brown and Gayego, come over from the Kentucky Derby to compete for the $1 million purse on Saturday, May 17th. Big Brown is fresh off his 4 ¾ length victory over 8 Belles at the Derby. 8 Belles was the horse that took a tragic fall at the end of the race after breaking both front ankles before getting euthanized in front of the 200,000 crowd at Churchill Downs that was seen by millions on NBC.
Big Brown is the pre-race favorite just as he was before the Derby. Except this time he’s a very hefty favorite at that. Most of the early action is on Big Brown and he’s currently listed at ¼ odds to win the Preakness Stakes. By race time his odds are sure to get a bit more favorable once more action goes down on the other horses in this field. Pole position will be a big factor in this race as well. Let’s take a look at all 13 of the 2008 Preakness Stakes contenders to help you make your predictions before the start of the race on Saturday, May 17th.
Behindatthebar at 10/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
This horse captured a victory at the Lexington Stakes just two weeks ahead of the Kentucky Derby, compiling enough graded stakes earnings to make the field at Churchill Downs. But cooler heads prevailed in trainer Todd Pletcher and main owner Satish Sanan. They didn’t want to face their third tough race in 30 days, instead zeroing in on the Preakness Stakes as the ideal target. Pletcher and Sanan now bring a fresh horse to the Preakness, one who has never tasted defeat at the hands of Derby Champion Big Brown.
Big Brown at ¼ odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
Big Brown dominated the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby in dramatic fashion. He swooped around the turn and made a brilliant home-stretch run to blast the field. The lack of Derby runners competing at the Preakness shows how much he absolutely dominated the field of 20 horses. There is no reason for those horses to be given the chance to compete with Big Brown again. Many have predicted this pony to be the next Triple Crown winner, and for good reason. Big Brown has never lost in 4 career starts and really none of the races he has entered have been even close.
Gayego at 20/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
Gayego is the only other horse coming over from the Derby to compete with Big Brown at the Preakness Stakes. This horse has proven he can leave the synthetic tracks in California and win on the dirt, as indicated by his first place finish at the Arkansas Derby earlier this year. Gayego got knocked around in the 20-horse field in Kentucky and never really could get his strong run going. He’ll give it another shot with more room to operate in this 13-horse field on Saturday, May 17th at Plimico.
Giant Moon at 20/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
A fourth-place finish at the Wood Memorial was not enough to get Giant Moon into the Derby, forcing trainer Richard Shosberg to set his sights on the Preakness. This horse won its first four races before having a poor showing on a sloppy track at the Gotham Stakes. After missing the Derby, this horse could be primed to take down Big Brown at Plimico.
Hey Burn at 20/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
This son of Put it Back fell just short of making the graded stakes earning to compete at the Kentucky Derby as well. Hey Burn will take his second shot at beating Derby winner Big Brown at Plimico. Hey Burn finished fourth at the Florida Derby, a race Big Brown absolutely dominated. Hey Burn shouldn’t be given a chance at the Preakness due to the fact that he finished 15 ¾ lengths behind Big Brown in Florida. But this colt did come back to win just two weeks later at the Grade III Holy Bull Stakes in his most recent start.
Icabad Crane at 25/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
Icabad Cranes continues the tradition of a Maryland winner heading into the Preakness Stakes. He bolted through the field at Pimlico’s Federico Tesio Stakes that made him a prime prospect to take down the 133rd running of the Preakness Stakes. Icabad will be ridden by his regular jockey, Jeremy Rose, who guided Afleet Alex to Preakness and Belmont Stakes victories in 2005.
Kentucky Bear at 16/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
A third-place finish by Kentucky Bear at Keeneland’s Toyota Blue Grass Stakes was just short of what this horse needed to run at the Kentucky Derby. But two extremely fast workouts at Keeneland recently have put this Kentucky Bear in line to try and tackle Big Brown at the Preakness Stakes.
Macho Again at 20/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
A winner of the Churchill Downs’ Derby Trial, Macho Again has shown signs of brilliance but inconsistency has kept this horse out of the “Big Race”. Now Macho Again gets his shot to take down Big Brown at the Preakness. Owner West Point Thoroughbreds threw their other competitive horse, El Gato Malo, into the Ohio Derby to open the door for Macho Again to run in Plimico.
Racecar Rhapsody at 50/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
This horse is just another one of the Kentucky Derby hopefuls who fell just short on graded stakes earnings to compete. That brought on the Preakness Stakes as the ideal place to run the son of Tale of the Cat. In Racecar Rhapsody’s most recent start, this horse finished only sixth at Keeneland’s Coolmore Lexington Stakes. He was the third horse to exit Lexington and head to the Preakness, following winner Behindatthebar and third-place finisher Riley Tucker. Two previous starts on dirt tracks had Racecar Rhapsody finishing 2nd and 4th respectively. Chances are this horse won’t finish anywhere near the top at Pimlico.
Riley Tucker at 50/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott bring Riley Tucker, named after his son, to Pimlico to compete in the 2008 Preakness Stakes. Riley Tucker has prepared himself nice for the Preakness by finishing second and third in two stakes races at Keeneland. His last start was at Coolmore Lexington, where Riley Tucker chased Behindatthebar to the wire.
Stevil at 50/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
Owner Robert LaPante Jr. turns to Stevil as his only hope to take down one of three Triple Crown races at the Preakness this weekend. LaPante already had War Pass go down with an injury and Cool Coal Man finishing a disappointing 15th at the Derby. Stevil was fourth in Keeneland’s Toyota Blue Grass Stakes and didn’t make enough graded earning for the Derby, so the Preakness became a solid target. Hall of Fame Trainer Nick Zito will be looking for his second Preakness Stakes victory by getting Stevil in shape for Saturday.
Tres Borrachos at 50/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
Tres Borrachos earned his way into the 133rd running of the Preakness Stakes with a third-place finish at the Arkansas Derby to take his share of the $1-million purse. But that run was not enough to get Tres Borrachos into the Derby, so trainer C. Beau Greely and the three owners on this horse will have to set their sights towards the Preakness. Tres Borrachos has been training on the dirt at Churchill Downs for several weeks to better prepare for the Preakness this weekend.
Yankee Bravo at 20/1 odds to win the Preakness Stakes:
Trainer Paddy Gallagher chose to pull Yankee Bravo out of the Kentucky Derby after not earning enough graded stakes and decided to gear up for the Preakness instead. Yankee Bravo has proven to be extremely versatile with successful runs on dirt and synthetic surfaces. This horse won the California Derby on synthetic and followed it up with a third-place finish at the Louisiana Derby on dirt. Both races Yankee Bravo showed his tremendous closing speed which could prove to be the key to winning at the Preakness Stakes. Yankee Bravo has been around the world, getting sold three separate times. He made his first start a winning one with a 6-furlong triumph in England. That win got him sold to the current owners and to be trained by Irishman Gallagher, looking for his first Triple Crown race victory.
