History of the Preakness Stakes
Below is a MRR and PLR article in category Recreation Sports -> subcategory Gambling Casinos.
History of the Preakness Stakes
Overview
The Preakness Stakes, inaugurated in 1873, is a prestigious Thoroughbred horse race named after a racehorse called Preakness. This horse won the Dinner Party Stakes on October 25, 1870, coinciding with the opening of Pimlico Race Course. Maryland's former Governor decided to honor the colt by naming the race after it.
The Race
As part of the esteemed Triple Crown, alongside the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes, the Preakness Stakes is famously known as the "Run for the Black-Eyed Susans." The victorious horse is adorned with a floral wreath of these iconic flowers. Scheduled for the third Saturday in May, the race takes place at the historic Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland.
Open to both fillies and colts, fillies often compete in Triple Crown events not exclusive to colts. Fillies carry 121 pounds, whereas colts carry 126 pounds during the race.
Participation
The Preakness typically attracts the Kentucky Derby winner, as that horse is the sole contender for the Triple Crown. It also features other Derby participants and some new contenders. At nine furlongs, the Preakness is the shortest of the Triple Crown races, compared to the Kentucky Derby's ten furlongs and the Belmont Stakes' twelve furlongs.
Historical Highlights
The inaugural Preakness Stakes in 1873 featured only seven horses, with Survivor claiming victory by a record-breaking margin of ten lengths. This record stood until 2004, when Smarty Jones triumphed by eleven lengths.
A beloved tradition involves the color-changing of the weather vane atop the infield cupola. Once the race results are official, a painter updates the jockey's colors to reflect those of the winning jockey's silks, where they remain until the next year's Preakness.
This article on horse racing is brought to you by Betamerica.com.
You can find the original non-AI version of this article here: History of the Preakness Stakes.
You can browse and read all the articles for free. If you want to use them and get PLR and MRR rights, you need to buy the pack. Learn more about this pack of over 100 000 MRR and PLR articles.