Justify, the winner of the 2018 Kentucky Derby, will look to keep his Triple Crown dreams alive this coming May 19th, when he breaks out of the gates at the Pimlico Race Coursefor the 143rd staging of the Preakness Stakes. Will Justify do just that? Or will another horse take home the victory? At press (odds subject to change), Justify is the clear +150 favorite at the sportsbook/racebook.
It’s a no brainer that Justify will come into the 2018 Preakness Stakes as the heavy favorite, considering that it won the first leg of this year’s Triple Crown during the recently concluded 2018 Kentucky Derby. Justify was the heavy favorite to win the Run for the Roses, and when it finally won, he became the first 3-year-old horse in 136 years to win the Kentucky Derby without being raced as a 2-year-old. If Justify could break such a curse, why can’t it win at the Pimlico Race Course? Justify is trained by Bob Baffert, whose horses have won six Preakness Stakes victories in the past.
Good Magic failed to get back-to-back wins when it faltered in the Kentucky Derby, but the 3-year-old still made a mark. Good Magic gave Justify a run for he’s own money (no pun intended), as the Chad Brown-trained horse put himself in a great position to overtake the eventual Derby winner after the final turn only to fade later on. In any case, Good Magic is still a great option for those looking for value. It won the Blue Grass Stakes prior to the Derby and the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in 2017. In six career races, Good Magic has also shown in all of them, which also includes a third-place finish in last March’s Fountain of Youth Grade 2 Stakes. Speaking of Brown, his horse, Cloud Computing, won last year’s edition of the Preakness Stakes. In addition to that, he also trained Curlin, Good Magic’s father and the winner of the 2007 Preakness Stakes.
Now we move on to a horse that you should not be betting the farm on but could win you enough money to buy one if it wins. Take for example Solomini, who finished 10th in the Kentucky Derby. Not since its maiden race last year has it won a race. Including the Derby, that’s six races of nothing but failure to get to the top of the podium. Clearly, there’s a reason why Solomini is a long shot. Having said all of that, Solomini has only once finished outside of the top three in all those races, and that was during the Kentucky Derby. It has been a runner-up three times and finished third twice. Another thing that’s a plus for Solomini is that it’s also trained by Bob Baffert.
Writer’s Prediction
Good Magic ends Justify’s Triple Crown dreams with a win at the Pimlico Race Course.
