National Treasure wins the Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

National Treasure wins the Preakness, denying Mage a shot at the Triple Crown

Fresh off winning the Kentucky Derby, Mage entered the 148th running of the Preakness Stakes hoping to secure the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown.

Mage, however, would be denied as it was National Treasure who came away the winner of the Preakness.

National Treasure and Mage both got off to a decent start, and National Treasure took the lead into the first turn, followed by Coffeewithchris and Blazing Sevens, with Mage in fourth. Red Route One moved into third at the half-mile marker, followed by Blazing Sevens and Mage.

Down the stretch it was neck-and-neck between National Treasure and Blazing Sevens, as Mage tried hard to close the gap. In the end it was National Treasure inching ahead of Blazing Sevens, denying Mage a shot at the Triple Crown. The victory was the first at the Preakness for John Velazquez, who was previously 0-for-12 at the Preakness.

This marks the eighth Preakness win for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert. Baffert was making his return following a two-year suspension for doping.

Here’s a look at the finish:

As noted by NBC’s Steve Kornacki ahead of the Preakness, Mage was the first “undisputed” Kentucky Derby to race at the Preakness in five years:

Mage was also just the third horse to win the Kentucky Derby without racing as a two-year-old, joining Justify in 2018 and Apollo back in 1882.

The Preakness Purse

The purse for the 148th Preakness Stakes matches the total purse from a year ago, at $1.5 million. The top five finishers will split that purse, with the bulk of the $1.5 million going to the winner.

Here is how the purse is distributed:

1st Place: $900,000
2nd Place: $300,000
3rd Place: $165,000
4th Place: $90,000
5th Place: $45,000

The total purse of $1.5 million is a sizeable amount, but short of the record for the Preakness Stakes. That was set back in 2019, with a total purse of $1.65 million.

What were the odds?

The odds for the 2023 Preakness opened with Mage as the favorite, followed by First Mission and then Blazing Sevens. But when First Mission scratched due to injury, Mage solidified its position as the favorite.

Here were the odds at the end of the day Friday:

Over the course of the day Saturday, National Treasure closed in on Mage atop the board. The Bob Baffert-trained horse moved from 3-1 to 5-2, as Mage moved from 9-5 to 2-1. Here were the odds as of mid-day Saturday, listed by post position:

1-National Treasure 5-2
2-Chase the Chaos 7-1
3-Mage 2-1
4-Coffeewithchris 8-1
5-Red Route One 6-1
6-Perform 7-1
7-Blazing Sevens 4-1

Right before the start Mage was still listed as the favorite at 8-5, followed by National Treasure at 5-2 and Blazing Sevens at 9-2.

Tragedy strikes prior to the Preakness

Sadly, there was a tragic scene at Pimlico in the hours before the Preakness Stakes. During the running of the Chick Lang Stakes, Havnameltdown took a bad step coming out of a turn and stumbled, throwing jockey Luis Saez to the ground. Havnameltdown suffered a broken left front fetlock injury that was deemed non-operable, and the decision was made to euthanize the horse on the track.

Since the week of the Kentucky Derby, nine horses have now died including Havnameltdown. Following the eight deaths in the week of the Kentucky Derby Churchill Downs, the Kentucky Horseracing Commission, and the congressionally mandated Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), have launched probes that are still ongoing.

“HISA officials will review data on track conditions and maintenance and each horse’s veterinary and training records, as well as final necropsy reports, when available,” the Commission said in a statement to ESPN. “In addition, HISA officials will review the data collection and review processes utilized by the KHRC and Churchill Downs in the course of their investigations.”

Up next, the Belmont Stakes

Horse racing’s Triple Crown concludes in three weeks with the 155th running of the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York.

And horse racing fans will have to wait at least another year for a Triple Crown.