With the Preakness Stakes coming this weekend on Saturday, May 18, there is one name that has been on horse racing fans’ minds: Bob Baffert, who won the Triple Crown with horses American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018.
The trainer has been barred from competing at the Kentucky Derby since 2021 due to a positive drug test on horse Medina Spirit for an anti-inflammatory steroid. The trainer is still actively competing in other races, including the next two parts of the Triple Crown: Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes.
With Mystik Dan now set to compete against Baffert’s horses at Preakness — which was only confirmed on Saturday, May 11, just one week before the second leg — to go for the Triple Crown, one question remains: Can Mystik Dan beat out Baffert’s horses?
Baffert had two horses going into this weekend. However, the favorite to win — Muth — scratched on Wednesday, May 15, just three days before the race. Now, Mystik Dan only has to compete against Imagination.
Mystik Dan currently holds 5-2 odds while Imagination has 6-1 odds, which means Mystik Dan has the slight edge over Baffert’s horse to take the center podium on Saturday.
Andy Serling, TV Analyst and Handicapper for the New York Racing Association, said on Twitter on Monday, May 13, that Mystik Dan may even improve heading into Preakness.
“I expect Mystik Dan will run his race, could even improve, and we will see if he’s good enough,” he said on Twitter. “Mage didn’t lose the Preakness because he ran a worse race than the Derby, he simply got completely different race dynamics which forced him to change to a less effective running style.”
This article appears in May 8-21, 2024.
