Look to Animal Kingdom to Take the Preakness this Weekend

This weekend marks the 136th Preakness Stakes race, and the field is narrowing down as Preakness Stakes betting fans are getting ready to place their bets.

The heavy favorite going into the race this weekend is Animal Kingdom, winner of the most recent Kentucky Derby. With a winning combination of speed and endurance, the odds placed on this little champion are 2-1, despite an undesirable post position of 11. Over the last 85 years, only two winners of the Preakness Stakes have also come from a post position of 11, so Animal Kingdom is definitely at a disadvantage coming right out of the gate. Despite this unfortunate pull, Preakness Stakes betting communities are looking to Animal Kingdom to take home the top honors and set himself up to take the third leg of the Triple Crown coming up at the Belmont Stakes.

Sitting hot on his heels coming into the Preakness Stakes this weekend are other contenders from the recent Kentucky Derby. Both Mucho Macho Man and Dialed In are looking for redemption in this weekend’s race, after both having disappointing finishes at the Kentucky Derby Mucho Macho Man is slated at 6-1 odds following a lukewarm showing at the Kentucky Derby, but both his rider and his trainer are expecting great things from this little colt. Dialed In has a lot of ground to make up from after finishing a disappointing eighth place at the Kentucky Derby in which he was an early favorite to take the roses. Typically horses that have competed in the Kentucky Derby make strong showings in the Preakness Stakes leg of the Triple Crown, and Dialed In and Mucho Macho Man are hoping to hold to that reputation.

For the first time in several years, the Preakness Stakes have a full field of fourteen horses, any one of which can easily emerge from the pack to win it all. With one of the early favorites, a horse named Nehro out of this weekend’s race but expected to return for the third leg of the Triple Crown, the field is wide open. If you’re looking to place a wager on this weekend’s Preakness Stakes, the smart money is on Animal Kingdom to run a clean race and go home with the top trophy, but Mucho Macho Man and Dialed In are also both going to be strong contenders.