Preakness 2015 Post Positions: Historical Look at Best Slots in Race History

While post positions may not appear to be as big of a factor in the Preakness Stakes as they are in the Kentucky Derby due to a smaller field of contenders, historical data says otherwise.

Every horse, favorite or long shot, will welcome any slight advantage heading into the middle jewel of the Triple Crown, and according to Preakness.com, some starting gates will provide just that. Others, however, have been detrimental to contenders' chances of winning at Pimlico over the years.

Nick Wass/Associated Press

The most successful starting position since 1909 has been gate No. 6. It has produced a total of 16 winners over that span, most recently propelling Oxbow to victory in 2013. The only gate to produce multiple winners over the last 10 years is No. 7—Big Brown in 2008 and Lookin at Lucky in 2010.

On the other hand, the inside positions haven't been favorable in recent years. With a smaller field in the Preakness, the risk of getting caught against the rail and falling behind the pack isn't quite as great; however, contenders tend to struggle from the first two starting positions. Gate No. 1 hasn't produced a winner since Tabasco Cat in 1994, and the last winner out of gate No. 2 was Snow Chief in 1986.

2015 Preakness Stakes Post Draw Info

When: Wednesday, May 13

Time: 5 p.m. ET

Channel: HRTV

Live Stream: HRTV.com and DRF.com

Interestingly enough, outside gates (No. 9 through No. 12) have produced six winners over the past 17 years, but due to a bevy of recent scratches, it looks like those positions will remain vacant this year. According to Odds Shark, only eight contenders are set to face off in the Preakness.

Why so few? That would be due to trainer Todd Pletcher's decision to yank each of his four horses—Materiality, Carpe Diem, Competitive Edge and Stanford—from this year's race. Pletcher explained his decision during an interview with Jonathan Lintner of the Courier-Journal:

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We were considering it very seriously. Basically, it came down to we just felt two weeks was a little bit risky. We felt five weeks to the Belmont would be an advantage for [Materiality]. He's been at Belmont since two days after the Derby and has been training well. He's by a Belmont-winning sire. If you come back in two weeks and you turn out to be wrong, not only could you not run well in the Preakness, it could compromise your chances in the Belmont as well.

"

This provides an interesting twist to this year's Triple Crown chase. Kentucky Derby winner American Pharoah will attempt to take the Preakness and move on to Belmont in search of a feat no horse has accomplished since Affirmed in 1978. The absence of Pletcher's horses certainly helps Pharoah's chances at Pimlico, but the colt may have a difficult time defeating so many fresh legs in the Belmont Stakes.

But for now, let's concentrate on the Preakness. After all, if Pharoah doesn't win at Pimlico, that Triple Crown storyline will vanish well before the third leg commences.

The next order of business for Preakness contenders will be the post draw. Pharoah didn't have much luck during the Kentucky Derby's draw, pulling gate No. 18 (he eventually started in gate No. 16 due to scratches). Meanwhile, his biggest challengers, Dortmund and Firing Line, acquired favorable starting locations. Will that trend continue in Pimlico?

It won't be long until we find out.