Account
How to Watch the Preakness 2021 Post Positions Draw: Live-Stream Info
May 11, 2021
On Tuesday, the field for the 146th Preakness Stakes will be set. Not only that, but it will be known which posts the horses will be starting from on Saturday evening at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.
However, there's one question on everybody's mind at this point: Will Kentucky Derby champion Medina Spirit be among the runners at the gates when the race gets underway?
After a dominant showing at Churchill Downs on May 1, Medina Spirit tested positive for the steroid betamethasone, which was announced by trainer Bob Baffert on Sunday. Baffert isn't going to Pimlico, but his two horses (Medina Spirit and Concert Tour) arrived on Monday.
Whether Medina Spirit will have his Derby win taken away has yet to be determined. The Maryland Jockey Club said in a statement Sunday that it's reviewing whether the colt will be allowed to race in the Preakness. That uncertainty led to the post draw being pushed back from Monday to Tuesday.
Here's everything else you need to know heading into Tuesday's post draw.
Post Positions Draw Info
Date: Tuesday, May 11
Start Time: 4 p.m. ET
Live Stream: Facebook.com/Preakness
Preview
If Medina Spirit is allowed to enter the Preakness, the colt will surely be among the favorites. He has never finished worse than second in six career races, and his strong start to the Kentucky Derby allowed him to lead the field for the entirety of the event.
Although Baffert won't be at Pimlico, he'll be hoping for a strong showing from Medina Spirit, especially with the skepticism and scrutiny that has come over the past few days.
"I want him to run a good race because now everybody's piling on him," he said, per ESPN.com. "It's probably more pressure now that he's got to run well."
Even if Medina Spirit can't race, Baffert will still have a strong chance of one of his horses winning the Preakness. Concert Tour was originally listed among the Kentucky Derby favorites, but the legendary trainer instead had him prepare for the second leg of the Triple Crown.
Concert Tour won his first three career races, then finished third in the Arkansas Derby last month. He'll be among the top contenders in the Preakness and could end up earning Baffert his eighth career victory at the event, which would extend his all-time record.
It's also possible that the 68-year-old won't be alone with that record by the end of the Preakness. Trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who has won the race six times, will be looking to match Baffert's mark with Ram, who is coming off two straight wins.
Lukas won the Preakness five times from 1980 to 1999, but his only victory after that stretch came with Oxbow in 2013. Ram, who is a son of 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah, won't be among the top favorites, though he could have a strong showing.
"We realize he has to step forward to be effective," Lukas said, per the Paulick Report. "But when these horses are doing well, sometimes they'll step up and do what you want them to do. I always thought this horse had potential."
There aren't many horses from the Kentucky Derby field that will also be racing in the Preakness. Outside of Medina Spirit, the only two that will likely be at Pimlico are O Besos (finished fifth in the Derby), Midnight Bourbon (sixth) and Keepmeinmind (seventh).
Trainer Brad H. Cox had two of the top four finishers in the Derby: Mandaloun (second) and Essential Quality (fourth). And it's possible Mandaloun could still end up as the winner if Medina Spirit is disqualified.
However, Cox decided not to enter any horses into the Preakness. So if Medina Spirit either loses his Kentucky Derby win or can't race in the Preakness, it will be guaranteed that there will be no Triple Crown champion this year.