American Pharoah Will Overcome Unlucky Post Position to Win Preakness Stakes

Kentucky Derby winner American Pharoah didn't get the post position trainer Bob Baffert had hoped for, but that won't stop the colt from moving a step closer to winning the Triple Crown.

According to Bodog (h/t Odds Shark), American Pharoah is the favorite to win with 10-13 odds. 

If the field were larger and filled with more legitimate threats, it would be easier to get down on American Pharoah's chances of winning at Pimlico Race Course because of his assigned rail position.

However, because his stiffest competition will come from Dortmund (another Baffert horse who finished third at the Derby) and Firing Line (runner-up at Churchill Downs), American Pharoah still has a very winnable race ahead of him.

Garry Jones/Associated Press

A few more serious contenders could have been added to the mix had renowned trainer Todd A. Pletcher not pulled his horses from the race. Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde took Pletcher to task for what he described as "undermining the Preakness":

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Pletcher has run 43 horses in the Derby and seven in the Preakness, and is far more likely to contest both of the first two legs of the Triple Crown if he's won the Derby (it's happened only once, in 2010, with Super Saver). No single trainer has done more to undermine the Preakness than Pletcher, who should be about as popular in Baltimore as the Pittsburgh Steelers. Without his contingent, just eight horses are in this year's field – the smallest Preakness field in 15 years.

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In any case, the diminished field will limit the impact the first post position has on American Pharoah. A larger field—like the 18-horse competition at the Derby—could have created a ton of pressure on the horse who starts on the far inside.

With just seven horses to American Pharoah's right, he should be able to find his groove relatively quickly.

Once that happens, his natural speed should again separate him from Dortmund and Firing Line near the middle of the race.

American Pharoah has won five straight races including the Derby. In each of those wins, the horse has produced triple-digit Beyer Speed figures. The Derby was relatively close, but the five consecutive wins have been by a combined 23 ¼ lengths.

Darron Cummings/Associated Press

American Pharoah will also have one of the most decorated and accomplished jockeys in the world on his back.

Victor Espinoza guided California Chrome to wins in the 2014 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. He was the man in the saddle for American Pharoah's win at Churchill Downs and will repeat his 2014 performance by riding the horse past the smallish field at Pimlico.