American Pharoah's Top 2015 Preakness Rivals, Odds for 2nd Leg of Triple Crown
After his ruthless display to win the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, all eyes will be on American Pharoah when the Preakness Stakes rolls around on May 16.
The Bob Baffert-trained colt is a genuine Triple Crown contender in the eyes of the racing cognoscenti. Wins in the Preakness and Belmont Stakes are needed for the Derby winner to complete the coveted treble; if he does so, it would end a 37-year drought for a Triple Crown winner.
But these two remaining races on Pharoah’s checklist command a gravitas in their own right, and there will be plenty desperate to triumph at Pimlico in this illustrious affair. As such, here’s a rundown of some competitors likely to be vying with the Derby winner for the Preakness Stakes title.
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| American Pharoah to win Preakness Stakes | Evs | 71-100 |
| American Pharoah to win Triple Crown | 9-4 | 29-100 |
For full listings, click here. Odds accurate as of 1:50 p.m. (BST), May 5.
Dortmund
It would be a bittersweet day for Baffert if American Pharoah’s stablemate Dortmund crossed the line ahead of the Run for the Roses winner in the Preakness Stakes. But looking at Dortmund’s display at Churchill Downs—when he finished third in the Derby—he’ll have an excellent chance should he run in the Preakness.
“I'm sure he's going to want a little revenge,” said Baffert when discussing the prospect of Dortmund running at Pimlico with owner Kaleem Shah, per Gary Klein of the Los Angeles Times. “His horse ran a really good race.”
As we can see here, the colt was leading this race for long spells:
Some would see this as self-sabotage for Baffert. After all, prior to the Derby, Dortmund had won all six races he’d competed in, and even in finishing third in the Run for the Roses, he was extremely impressive. Given the pace at which he began, the slightly shorter distance could also suit the son of former winner Big Brown.
However, as noted by Tim Sullivan of The Courier-Journal, Dortmund being in the race would be no bad thing:
Dortmund would have a brilliant chance of seizing glory at Pimlico should he run. But American Pharoah proved in Louisville that he has the speed and staying power to match his stable-mate. Should Baffert decide to run both again, Pharoah's jockey, Victor Espinoza, would surely be confident of steering the Derby winner to victory.
Divining Rod
Given the confidence American Pharoah and Espinoza exuded in winning the 141st Derby, the biggest threat to him could come from a horse that didn’t compete in the race. Divining Rod was absent in Kentucky but is poised to launch a major assault on the Preakness chase after some impressive recent form.
Trained by Arnaud Delacour, the three-year-old was a classy winner in the Lexington Stakes on April 11. Speaking with Blood-Horse, Delacour claimed his team is targeting the Preakness and is hoping the Derby top three—made up of the aforementioned Baffert duo and Firing Line—could be susceptible to fatigue:
"The first three horses (in the Derby) I would say are going to be very tough to take on, but the thing is they all had a pretty hard race.
They all had to fight for it. I didn't see any of them having to do it easy, so I hope that they're going to maybe be a little bit tired coming back in two weeks.
"
Indeed, while Divining Rod was strong in winning in Lexington, he’s yet to be tested by a top-quality field. As such, horse racing expert CraigJ doesn’t think he has a chance of winning at Pimlico, even though he did skip the Derby:
While tiredness may be a factor for the likes of Pharoah and Dortmund after such an arduous battle in Louisville, typically the horses that perform well at Churchill Downs preserve their form when taking to the post at Preakness.
As such, while a replenished and in-form Divining Rod could be in the mix for victory, in those final furlongs, he’s unlikely to have the staying power to keep with the elite runners in the mix. Expect a valiant effort from the Delacour-trained colt but for class to eventually tell in the final embers of this race.
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