Preakness Odds 2020: Picks and Predictions Based on Recent Betting Lines

The field for the 2020 Preakness Stakes is now set, and on Saturday, 11 horses will head to the posts for the annual race at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, one of the marquee events for the sport. And although this year's race is much different than past years, there are still some strong competitors taking part.

Typically the second leg of the Triple Crown schedule, this year's Preakness is wrapping up the slate. It was postponed from the third Saturday in May to the first Saturday in October due to the coronavirus pandemic, while the Belmont Stakes still took place in June and the Kentucky Derby happened earlier this month.

In a normal year, the Kentucky Derby winner heads to the Preakness with Triple Crown aspirations. But no Triple Crown is in play this year after Tiz the Law won the Belmont and Authentic won the Derby. However, Authentic is still racing the Preakness and is the early favorite to secure the win.

Here's a look at the full field for Saturday's race, along with post positions and odds, followed by a breakdown of the field and predictions for the top finishers.

2020 Preakness Post Positions, Odds

1. Excession (30-1)

2. Mr. Big News (12-1)

3. Art Collector (5-2)

4. Swiss Skydiver (6-1)

5. Thousand Words (6-1)

6. Jesus' Team (30-1)

7. Ny Traffic (15-1)

8. Max Player (15-1)

9. Authentic (9-5)

10. Pneumatic (20-1)

11. Liveyourbeastlife (30-1)

Odds obtained via Preakness Stakes.

Field Breakdown, Predictions

It's not a surprise that Authentic is the early favorite to win this year's Preakness. The Kentucky Derby winner has won five of the six races he's competed in, and he's trained by Bob Baffert, who has won the Preakness seven times, tied for the most all-time.

Earlier this month, Baffert tied Ben Jones for the most Kentucky Derby wins of all time with his sixth. Now, he could break his tie with R. Wyndham Walden for the most Preakness victories with a win in Saturday's race. And Authentic isn't his only horse in the field, as Thousand Words will also be racing.

Thousand Words ended up not racing the Kentucky Derby—he was a scratch shortly before the race started as he fell down in his paddock. However, his 6-1 odds to win the Preakness are tied for third-best in the field as he looks to win the first race he's run since the Shared Belief Stakes on Aug. 1 (which he won).

There are some other strong horses in the field, though, that could challenge the Baffert-trained horses.

Art Collector (5-2) has the second-best odds to win the Preakness after he missed the Kentucky Derby due to a minor foot injury. He was expected to be a top contender in the Derby after he had won each of his past five races, including the Blue Grass Stakes on July 11 and the Ellis Park Derby on Aug. 9.

Another horse to watch is Swiss Skydiver (6-1), who is the first filly to run the Preakness since Rachel Alexandra in 2009. She finished second at the Kentucky Oaks earlier this month, and she raced against the male horses at the Blue Grass Stakes, where she finished second to Art Collector.

They'll all be looking to beat Authentic, who didn't draw the best starting position, as he'll be in the No. 9 post. However, a bad draw didn't stop him from winning the Kentucky Derby, in which he drew the No. 18 post.

"I'd rather be 9 than 1 or 11. It really doesn't matter as long as he breaks OK," Baffert said, according to Bob Ehalt of BloodHorse.com. "... When Authentic drew 18, I thought I was done, so 9 is fine. It is what it is."

It's going to be more than just fine. Don't expect it to take Authentic long to find his way to the front of the field at the Preakness, as he showed he has no problem breaking strong at the Derby, where he went wire to wire for the victory.

Swiss Skydiver and Art Collector will make strong pushes near the end, but Authentic will be too strong for them to overcome, and he'll add another win to his great list of victories. And while it won't be a Triple Crown, it'll still be an impressive feat to win two of the three races in this unorthodox year.

Predicted order of finish: 1. Authentic; 2. Swiss Skydiver; 3. Art Collector.