Preakness Entries 2015: Odds and Post Positions for Contenders and Sleepers
Post positions for the 2015 Preakness Stakes are set, and storylines immediately bubbled to the surface even amid a small eight-horse field.
Trainer Bob Baffert's duo will start in the first two gates after Kentucky Derby winner American Pharoah drew the No. 1 post and Dortmund followed him up at No. 2. While that battle alone promises to deliver, Firing Line drawing the No. 8 post on the outside assures the Preakness will be an exhilarating race.
The win-place-show finishers at Churchill Downs are all the buzz, both in the sportsbook and the world of horse racing. But sleepers remain in the mix, even with only eight gates being filled come Saturday afternoon.
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2015 Preakness Stakes Post Draw and Odds
| 1 | American Pharoah | 2-3 | Bob Baffert | Victor Espinoza |
| 2 | Dortmund | 9-2 | Bob Baffert | Martin Garcia |
| 3 | Mr. Z | 40-1 | D. Wayne Lukas | Corey Nakatani |
| 4 | Danzig Moon | 14-1 | Mark Casse | Julien Leparoux |
| 5 | Tale of Verve | 50-1 | Dallas Stewart | Joel Rosario |
| 6 | Bodhisattva | 50-1 | Jose Corrales | Trevor McCarthy |
| 7 | Divining Rod | 14-1 | Arnaud Delacour | Javier Castellano |
| 8 | Firing Line | 17-4 | Simon Callaghan | Gary Stevens |
Odds courtesy of Odds Shark, updated as of May 13.
Top Contender: American Pharoah
American Pharoah's quest toward the Triple Crown will continue on the rail.
After winning the Derby just a few weeks ago from the 17th post position, American Pharoah arrived at Pimlico Race Course Wednesday only to draw the dreaded No. 1 post for Saturday's race. If he aspires to move one step away from breaking a 37-year Triple Crown drought, he'll have to make history.
As Mark Singelais of the Albany Times Union noted, only one horse has won from American Pharoah's gate in 65 years:
To make matters even tougher for American Pharoah, he'll have perhaps his toughest opponent between him and the rest of the field. Fellow Bob Baffert trainee Dortmund—the Kentucky Derby pace-setter who ran out of gas late—will be in the No. 2 post, offering a tough early task for either to emerge from the rail and into the lead.
Not surprisingly, Baffert isn't big on the draw but acknowledged it's not the end of the world, per Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde:
While the draw isn't ideal for either horse, it has more potential for despair for American Pharoah. He has a much larger Dortmund to deal with from the very beginning, and it wouldn't be surprising to see Dortmund get a head of steam early on just like at Churchill Downs.
As long as jockey Victor Espinoza can avoid disaster in the opening few furlongs, American Pharoah will settle into the race and get into the right position to win it. But it's no secret that Wednesday's draw offered reason for concern.
Top Sleeper: Danzig Moon
If the Derby is any indication, it's hard to make much of a case for anyone outside of American Pharoah, Dortmund or Firing Line finishing in the top three. But Danzig Moon could be one to shock the field and nose his way into late contention.
Coming off a second-place finish at the Blue Grass Stakes in April, Danzig Moon ran brilliantly at Churchill Downs and finished in fifth place—just 6 ½ furlongs off the winning pace of American Pharoah. Along with Frosted, Danzig Moon came dangerously close to usurping Dortmund for third place.
That daunting two-week turnaround is worth worrying about, but every indication from trainer Mark Casse is that he's fully ready, per Preakness.com: "Not that the two weeks is ideal for anybody, but I don’t think it will bother him much. He’s tough. You just never know until they run, but we think he’s still on his game."
With American Pharoah and Dortmund likely to battle it out on the inside, Danzig Moon will be running free from the No. 7 post—just one off the outside. He'll have Firing Line out at No. 8 to deal with, a horse who finished much better than he started at Churchill Downs.
Danzig Moon will be hard-pressed to beat out any of the three favorites, but even coming close should feel like a victory in itself.
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