Preakness 2018: Horses, Favorites and Contenders for This Year's Field

The race for this year's Triple Crown picks back up once again on Saturday as a field of the contenders face off at Pimlico Race Course seeking to bring home the 2018 Preakness Stakes.

Justify will return to the line-up after he clinched a comfortable victory in the Kentucky Derby almost two weeks ago and is hopeful of keeping alive his chances of completing the Triple Crown.

It's not uncommon to see the Preakness field reduced in comparison to the Kentucky Derby, but there's a chance one of those stepping in for the trip to Baltimore, Maryland, could emerge as a top contender.

OddsShark provided an early breakdown of the field odds for Preakness following Justify's win at Churchill Downs:

Read on for a preview of the 2018 Preakness Stakes, complete with live-stream information and post-time details.

Date: Saturday, May 19

Post time: 6:20 p.m. ET/11:20 p.m. BST

TV info: NBC

Live stream: NBC Sports app. 

Preview

Despite a late dash from eventual runner-up Good Magic, Justify's victory at a muddy Churchill Downs a fortnight ago was overwhelming for the majority and saw the undoubted best horse on the day win over his competition.

Jockey Mike Smith pushed him to the rail in good time and lived up to the favourite status placed upon him with aplomb. Bob Baffert showed off his latest major contender the morning after that result, via Horse Racing Nation:

There was no challenge from anywhere else in the field at Churchill Downs that looked capable of stopping Justify at the Derby, and he became the sixth successive favourite to emerge triumphant in that race.

It's not as simple as adding the second Triple Crown win, however, evidenced by the fact American Pharoah, another Baffert horse, was the last horse to complete the set in 2015.

Despite Justify leading the contenders in the build-up to the Kentucky meeting two weeks ago, even Baffert acknowledged his three-year-old impressed more than expected, per Jay Privman of Daily Racing Form:

That's precisely the result a trainer would like to see from a horse already blowing away its competition, having now won all four of his races since debuting in February of this year.

Baffert also has an ace in the hole, as detailed by Alysse Jacobs of the New York Racing Association—a perfect record at Preakness after winning in Louisville:

Good Magic closed the gap near the climax in Kentucky but still ended runner-up by two-and-a-half lengths, a gap that suggests there's more than a fortunate run or a good post position between the two horses.

He arrived in Baltimore on Monday ahead of a second challenge against the favoured Justify, per sportscaster Pete Gilbert:

Familiar faces from Churchill Downs will seek another shot at taking down Justify, while new contenders alike may fancy their chances of stopping the star before he can add a second Triple Crown trophy to his cabinet.