Preakness Stakes Betting Sites
The second leg of the Triple Crown runs this weekend at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The 2018 Preakness Stakes is scheduled for a 6:20 PM ET post time on Saturday, May 19th and once again, we’ll get a look at another potential run for the Triple Crown.
This year, all eyes are on Justify after he surged through the slop of a rain-soaked Kentucky Derby to a comfortable 2 ½ length victory. With a smaller field and lighter competition, Justify has emerged as the favorite with early odds right now at around 4/5.
Once post positions are announced Wednesday, the morning line odds will go out and we’ll have an even better look at who stands to mount the greatest threat.
Preakness Betting Sites, Apps, and Bonus Offers
A smaller field will give these other Kentucky Derby runners the room they need to make another serious run for first place at the 2018 Preakness Stakes.
How to Bet on the Preakness Stakes Race Online in the USA
We’ll dive more into this year’s betting considerations shortly, but let’s begin with a look at where you can bet on the Preakness Stakes online.
There are a handful of legal online racebook sites that are already well-established and proven. TVG and TwinSpires have been around for many years and are headquartered in the USA. All of our reccomended Preakness Stakes racebooks are licensed and accept real money wagers on all major horse racing events in all states they are operational in.
BetAmerica and TwinSpires will both be taking Preakness Stakes bets this weekend and any wager you place online will be pooled with the actual track betting pools. This ensures you’ll be paid at full track odds just the same as if you had placed your bets in-person at Pimlico.
If you do not already have an account, all of the Preakness Stakes betting apps listed here offer our readers a special welcome bonus as an added benefit for signing up and funding your account.
How to Bet on the Preakness Stakes Everywhere Else
Bookmakers in the rest of the world do not typically cover US-centric horse races, but the Preakness Stakes is a big exception. As a part of the coveted Triple Crown of US racing, the Preakness Stakes is a massive event every year that attracts upwards of 135,000 fans.
Bet365 and William Hill offer Preakness Stakes betting with ante-post bets that are open right now as well as day-of wagers on Saturday.
2018 Preakness Stakes Betting Preview
The Preakness weather forecast is especially interesting this year because Kentucky Derby winner Justify comfortably won two weeks ago amid terrible track conditions. Even before the latest weather forecast came out, Justify was already a strong betting favorite. The specters of another wet running bodes well for the Derby winner.
If the air smells of rain on Saturday morning, casual racing fans are going to pile even more money on the already-dominant favorite. Even if the weather does turn out dry, his current odds of 4/9 are not all that exciting. However, Justify is by far the safest option. If you’re not worried about maximizing value so much as maximizing your overall chances to place a winning bet, Justify is your horse.
A more exciting alternative is the trifecta bet. With Justify and Good Magic leading the way right now as the two betting favorites, the trifecta is becoming ever more tempting with room to add one more runner to your slip. Bravazo might be the ticket, but his odds of have slipped a bit and he’s now looking like a longer shot. Not everyone is confident in Bravazo, but he did put on a nice performance at the Derby.
All three horses ran well in the sloppy Kentucky Derby with Justify winning, Good Magic taking second and Bravazo finishing in sixth place. Those three rank as the three highest Kentucky Derby finishers who are also expected to race at Pimlico this weekend.
Good Magic looks like another solid Preakness Stakes pick to either upset Justify or finish in second place again. He’ll have a smaller field to contend with at Preakness and came out of the muddy Kentucky Derby no worse for the wear. An exacta with Justify and Good Magic remains an option as well.
In the bigger Kentucky Derby, Good Magic was able to make his way to the front of the pack and challenge Justify before falling behind by 2 ½ lengths. With fewer horses at the Preakness Stakes, Good Magic has the ability to challenge Justify again.
Trainer Chad Brown says Good Magic is doing exceptionally well after the Kentucky Derby. On Sunday, he said:
“He has to be doing well, and he’s doing exceptionally well. He’s doing far better than I expected exiting the Derby. It’s remarkable to see how well the horse is moving and his energy level. He already has his weight back. He just looks great. I’m excited about it.”
Keeping Good Magic as a backup option to upset Justify or adding him as a part of a trifecta are both solid options at this point. Of course, everyone else is going to be thinking the same thing and payouts will reflect that, but a win is a win and a trifecta will still pay well even with the favorites occupying the podium places.
Wes Burns has more than a decade’s worth of experience as a writer, researcher, and analyst in the legal online betting industry and is co-founder of OnlineBettingSites.com. Wes approaches his work from the viewpoint of players.
