How to Bet the 2018 Preakness Stakes

It’s time for the 2nd leg of The Triple Crown and you knew that after our “amazing” 2018 Kentucky Derby picks did so well, we’d have to weigh in on this race. In case you missed that article and the ensuing pain, our resident horse racing expert Jacques Tannenbaum went on record that he hated Justify and thought that he was overrated. Turns out Justify was actually underrated and blew every other horse out of the slop on his way to cruising to an easy victory. Oh – he also blew up all of our perfectly crafted racebook selections that day.

Sometimes it’s easy to talk yourself out of the favorite and I should know, I’ve been gambling on sports for years, hammering underdogs in every Monday Night Football game since 1992 and gleefully losing Sunday winnings in the process. It really is a fantastic system that you should try sometime, win 9 units on Sunday, lose 10 on Monday! But I digress…

So how should you bet on 2018 Preakness? Well, Jacques’ direct quote to me was Justify should romp this field, which sounds a little too confident for my liking, but since he’s the only horse expert I know, I’ll just shut my mouth and roll with him. Those liking to play it safe will be happy because Justify should have no problem running the 9.5 furlongs to claim the lion’s share of the $1.5 million purse that’s up for grabs this weekend.

It kind of feels like this is too easy, but that might have something to do with the fact that this article is being written by a man who’s still licking his wounds after proclaiming that the Patriots winning the Super Bowl this year was a sure thing. Yup, I suck – good thing I work here.

Best Bets for the 2018 Preakness

Now that I’ve explained our terrible Kentucky Derby picks and confirmed that Justify should easily win the Preakness, lets look at some other ponies to get down on this weekend to pad anorexic bankrolls. There’s no way that any steed in this race should be beating Secretariat’s record time of 1:53 but there’s still a few strong entrants that deserve consideration.

JT is adamant that the only other horse who has a shot of winning this race is Good Magic, trained by Chad C. Brown with Jose L. Ortiz as his jockey. Everyone on the internet agrees that Good Magic will “give a good effort” but it’s very unlikely that it will be enough to upset Justify.

In any event, hammer Good Magic and Justify in trifectas, however, we need another horse to wheel into this combination, so who’s Monsieur Tannenbaum’s 3rd favorite horse on Saturday? None other than Quip, who’s currently sitting at +1,200 to win it all.

When I asked him why he liked Quip he mumbled something about his jockey Florent Geroux, who obviously shares the same background as our beloved Jacques. So either this is an “interesting” French Connection or it’s simply the fact that Geroux has proven himself as a jockey, and actually won the 2017 Preakness Stakes atop Gun Runner. I will try to do some more digging on this one…

2018 Preakness Stakes Long Shot Bet

Everyone wants to nail a long shot bet on Saturday just like the rest of us, so I made Jacques give me a dark horse to pass on to those who just can’t control themselves when they’re chasing big money. So if you’re the type of person who has to get some cash down on a neglected nag, Bravazo is the horse for you.

Currently sitting at a very meaty +2,000 to win, Bravazo could be exactly what trifecta and quinellas need to spice them up to yield a big payday. Or, perhaps this colt won’t improve on it’s 6th place Derby finish and as a result, totally blow up all tickets. Isn’t it fun?

Where to Bet the Preakness Stakes

This will be the 143rd time Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland will host The Preakness, however if not planning on taking a trip to “the land that God forgot” this weekend, you’ll need someone to take your wagers. Surprisingly nothing has changed in the last two weeks, well except for legal USA sports betting but that’s no big deal, so partners we were touting then are still good now.

Our favorite place will probably always be honest and forthcoming BetOnline, simply for offering the most variety of anyone else. We also know firsthand they’re a legit organization who are always honest with members and that obviously goes a long way with us. (This is all 100% true.)

Current Odds for the 2018 Preakness Stakes

The 2018 Kentucky Derby had 21 thoroughbreds in the field but this year’s Preakness has been slashed down to 8 entrants. It’s a lot easier to keep track of the horses in this race so try to juice up your potential payouts a little bit by sneaking in a cheeky nag – any of these really do have a “sporting chance” to win. Thanks, I’ll be here all week…try the fish.

#7 Justify -250

#5 Good Magic +300

#1 Quip +1,200

#2 Lone Sailor +1,300

#6 Tenfold +1,600

#8 Bravazo +2,000

#4 Diamond King +2,200

#3 Sporting Chance +2,500

 

***The 2018 Preakness Stakes will run on May 19th, 2018 at 6:48pm. Watch it live on NBC.***