Preakness Odds 2015: Top Picks, Updated Vegas Lines for 140th Race
Even with a smaller field, nothing will be easy for American Pharoah at the 2015 Preakness Stakes.
With just eight horses competing in the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Kentucky Derby winner won't have to worry about taking as long of a path to the finish line, but the remaining challengers all have a shot at taking home the title.
Add this to a difficult post position for Pharoah, and things will be interesting at Pimlico.
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Here is a look at the top contenders to win this coveted race along with a full breakdown of the post positions and odds going into the weekend.
| 1 | American Pharoah | Bob Baffert | Victor Espinoza | 4-5 |
| 2 | Dortmund | Bob Baffert | Martin Garcia | 7-2 |
| 3 | Mr. Z | D. Wayne Lukas | Corey Nakatani | 20-1 |
| 4 | Danzig Moon | Mark Casse | Julien Leparoux | 15-1 |
| 5 | Tale of Verve | Dallas Stewart | Joel Rosario | 30-1 |
| 6 | Bodhisattva | Jose Corrales | Trevor McCarthy | 20-1 |
| 7 | Divining Rod | Arnaud Delacour | Javier Castellano | 12-1 |
| 8 | Firing Line | Simon Callaghan | Gary Stevens | 4-1 |
Top Contenders
American Pharoah
While American Pharoah remains the favorite going into the middle jewel of the Triple Crown, starting in the No. 1 post will not be easy.
Mark Singelais of the Times Union pointed out the lack of success in the past from this position:
Meanwhile, Jennie Rees of the Courier-Journal explained how the end of the Kentucky Derby might be telling for future races:
"His final quarter-mile time in the Derby was a crawling 26.57 seconds. While he's an outstanding horse, he's not Seattle Slew. The relatively soft early pace of the Derby – a scenario aided by the speedy Florida Derby winner Materiality breaking slowly – made it tough on closers. The Preakness will be another story. He wasn't particularly bred to go 1 1/4 miles, let alone the Belmont's 1 1/2 miles.
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American Pharoah has taken on all comers and succeeded with five wins in a row, but the top contenders and a tough location might make another first-place finish extremely difficult.
Dortmund
Bob Baffert has two of the top contenders in this field, but both of them will be challenged by tough post positions. American Pharoah ended up with the rail, while Dortmund will start right next to him at No. 2.
As he explained to Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports, the trainer is not too excited about the results of the draw:
Still, the pure speed of Dortmund will help him at Pimlico. He was one of the pace-setters at the Kentucky Derby after coming into that race with an undefeated mark in six starts. Although he wasn't able to keep up in the final stretch, don't count him out in the next race.
Jockey Martin Garcia will learn from his experience at the last event and find a way to get into better position to win the next time out.
If he can avoid getting trapped inside at the start, Dortmund will be a top challenger to end up in the winner's circle.
Firing Line
Starting on the outside shouldn't be a problem for Firing Line considering the small field. In reality, the second-place finisher at the Kentucky Derby is one of the few competitors with a legitimate chance to upset American Pharoah.
Matt Dinerman of Three Colts Handicapping believes these three contenders are far ahead of the rest of the pack:
Firing Line has been one of the most consistent thoroughbreds on the circuit while finishing in at least second place in all of his six races. After a few close losses to Dortmund in previous events, he finally finished ahead of the talented colt at the Kentucky Derby.
Jockey Gary Stevens now wants to take the next step and pass American Pharoah at the next event:
With the pure speed of Firing Line to go with Stevens' experience, this team has a great chance of leading the pack Saturday.
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