How to Bet the 2021 Preakness Stakes Online – Where to Make a Bet, What Time Does the Race Start, and How You Can Watch?

By Robert Duff in Horse Racing News
Updated: May 17, 2021 at 1:29 pm EDTPublished:

- The Preakness Stakes runs on Saturday, May 15 with a 6:50 pm ET post time
- It’s the second leg of thoroughbred horse racing’s Triple Crown
- Everything you need to know to bet on the race is right here
It’s the 146th running of the Preakness Stakes going down at Pimlico Race Course on Saturday, May 15, 2021. When is the race? Who are the favorites? Where and how can you bet the big race? We answer this and everything else you may want to know about the second leg of the Triple Crown.
2021 Preakness Stakes Odds
Horse (Post Position) | Odds at TVG |
---|---|
Medina Spirit (3) | +180 |
Concert Tour (10) | +250 |
Midnight Bourbon (5) | +500 |
Crowded Trade (4) | +1000 |
Rombauer (6) | +1200 |
Keepmeinmind (2) | +1500 |
Unbridled Honor (8) | +1500 |
Risk Taking (9) | +1500 |
France Go de Ina (7) | +2000 |
Ram (1) | +3000 |
Odds as of May 13th
When Is the Preakness Stakes?
The Preakness Stakes will be contested on Saturday, May 15. Post time for the race is 6:50 pm ET.
Where Is the Preakness Stakes Run?
Known as The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans, the Preakness is held on the third Saturday in May at Baltimore’s Pimlico Race Course.
The field for the 146th Preakness! pic.twitter.com/wQckNxwXDi
— FanDuel Racing (Formerly TVG) (@FanDuel_Racing) May 11, 2021
How Can I Watch the Preakness Stakes?
NBC is carrying the Preakness broadcast. The telecast will begin at 2:00 pm ET on NBCSN, switching to NBC at 5:00 pm ET. Coverage is also available to stream live on NBCSports.com and on the NBC Sports app.
How Long is the Preakness Stakes?
The race’s current length of 1 3/16th miles (9.5 furlongs) was established in 1925. Secretariat set the Preakness record in 1973, winning in a time of 1:53.
1973 Preakness winner, Secretariat pic.twitter.com/R8ANXfJbqJ
— Sports & Betting History by BestBettingSites (@CDCHistory) May 10, 2021
The weather is forecast to be partly cloudy with light winds and a high of 70 degrees at race time, which should make for a fast track.
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What Kind of Bets Can I Make on the Preakness Stakes?
The most common horse racing wagers are win, place and show. You’re picking a horse to finish the race in first, second (place) or third (show).
A win bet is self-explanatory. The horse you play must win the race in order to cash.
A place bet cashes if your horse finishes first or second, while a show bet will be a winner as long as your horse hits the wire among the top three.
You can also bet across the board (combining win, place and show wagers on the same horse). Exactas (correctly combining the top two finishers in a race), trifectas (correctly combining the top three) finishers in a race and superfectas (correctly combining the top four finishers in a race).
You needn’t be at the race to wager on it. TVG and others are the best Preakness racebooks to try.
Which Jockeys and Trainers Have Won the Most Preakness Stakes?
Trainers Bob Baffert and R. Wyndham Walden have sent out a record seven winners of the Preakness Stakes.
Per Bob Baffert’s attorney, an agreement has been reached to allow Medina Spirit and Concert Tour to run in the Preakness Stakes. Will submit to pre-race testing. More to come … pic.twitter.com/ToByD4aepN
— Eric Crawford (@ericcrawford) May 11, 2021
Baffert’s Medina Spirit won the Kentucky Derby, but that victory is in jeopardy after the horse tested positive for 21 picograms of betamethasone. Baffert’s lawyer Craig Robertson reached an agreement with the Maryland Jockey Club that will permit Baffert trainees Medina Spirit and Concert Tour to enter the Preakness.
Jockey Eddie Arcaro won a record five Preakness Stakes. This year’s field of jockeys includes three-time Preakness winner Mike Smith aboard Concert Tour. Javier Castellano (Crowded Trade) has won the Preakness twice.
How Much Does a $2 Win, Place, Show Bet Pay?
That all depends upon the odds. A $2 win bet on a horse at odds of 2-1 would return $6 – $4 for the win and your $2 stake.
Calculating place and show wagers will depend upon which other horses factor into those pools. The payout pool on a show bet factors in two horses and the place pool takes into account three horses.
If those horses are all at lower odds, the price won’t be very high. However, if there are one or two longshots as part of the pool, that price will increase exponentially.
What Is a Exacta, Trifecta and Superfecta?
Exotic bets such as exactas, trifectas and superfectas are the parlay bets of horse racing. You can win a lot with minimal risk, but the odds are long that your bet will come in.
Wheeling or boxing a group of horses – combining them all to finish in any order among the top three – will cost more money, but does increase the chances of cashing a winning ticket.
Which Horses are Favored to Win the Preakness Stakes?
Baffert’s Medina Spirit is the +180 favorite to win the Preakness.
Should I Bet Medina Spirit to Win the Preakness Stakes?
Since 2011 just three favorites have won the Preakness Stakes. Longshots Cloud Computing (2017, 12-1), Oxbow (2013, 15-1) and Shackleford (2011, 12-1) all paid off at odds of 12-1 or better.
#Preakness contender Medina Spirit gallops by @PimlicoRC pic.twitter.com/njiMkCRJoZ
— Claire (Novak) Crosby (@ClaireECrosby) May 13, 2021
However, the last two betting favorites to win the Preakness – Justify (2018) and American Pharoah (2015) – were Baffert trainees that carried on to win the Triple Crown.
Which Horse Will Win the Preakness Stakes?
With all the attention focused on Medina Spirit, people might be watching the wrong Baffert horse. Concert Tour skipped the Kentucky Derby and was pointed toward this race. With Smith up, it looks like a winning combination.
it blows my mind that Mike Smith has a mount in the Preakness this year. he won his first Preakness in 1993. when i was 10. the first year i have Very Specific Memories of watching the Triple Crown on TV.
28 years later, i'm old. and he's STILL riding in the Preakness.
— rowan ward 🏳️⚧️🏇 (@rogueclown) May 12, 2021
Watch for Midnight Bourbon to make a better showing than his substandard sixth-place Derby performance.
Where Can I Bet on the Preakness Stakes?
TVG is the best-known online racebook for Preakness betting made easy. Be sure to check them out for all your Preakness Stakes betting needs. TVG is currently offering odds for all the races leading up to Saturday, as well as the Preakness Stakes undercard and Preakness Stakes.

Sports Writer
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.