After winning the Kentucky Derby in rather spectacular fashion, there can be no denying that Nyquist is the best 3-year old in the country right now. You can bet that he won’t be happy with just winning the Derby, though, as this is a horse that looks as though it has all the tools required to win the Triple Crown. He is going to have 11 other horses chasing him down this coming Saturday, May 21 at the 141st running of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Track, and well will take a closer look at some of those rivals in separate pieces. For now, let’s take a closer look at Nyquist and what he has done to this point in his career. To keep up with the latest odds for the 2016 Preakness Stakes race make sure to check out our Horse Racing betting lines portal.
#KyDerby champion, Nyquist gallops at Pimlico as he preps for the @PreaknessStakes. https://t.co/5MHLV82luE
— Kentucky Derby (@KentuckyDerby) May 16, 2016
Breaking Down Nyquist’s 2016 Preakness Odds
Nyquist’s History
Nyquist is a Kentucky-born colt out of Uncle Mo and Seeking Gabriel, by Forestry. While race horses generally take some part of the name from their parents, Nyquist was named after a Gustav Nyquist of the Detroit Red Wings. Owner Paul Reddam has a history of giving his horses named after hockey players from the Motor City, but Nyquist is the one that has brought him the most success so far. Nyquist impressed right out of the gate, and broke his maiden in his first career start at Santa Anita. He immediately made the jump to stakes races going from Grade 2 to Grade 1 after winning the Best Pal Stakes at Del Mar. He then went on to win his next 3 starts, including the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in 2015. That was enough to put him among the top 10 earners of the season, and it also won him the 2015 Eclipse Award for best 2-year old colt.
2016 began just as the previous season ended, with Nyquist taking his unbeaten record to 7 with wins in the San Vicente Stakes and the Florida Derby. He headed to Churchill Downs as the undisputed favorite, and did not disappoint, winning the race and taking his career earnings to almost $5 million in just 8 starts.
Jockey, Trainer, and Owner Info
Riding Nyquist has helped resurrect the career of Mario Gutierrez, who went into a bit of a tailspin after riding 2012 Kentucky Derby winner I’ll Have Another. Gutierrez is quoted as saying that he knew this horse was special the moment he first rode him.
Trainer Doug O’Neill is out for a little bit of vindication after his previous Triple Crown attempt was halted when I’ll Have Another went down with an injury in the week leading up to the Belmont Stakes. He is something of a controversial figure in the sport having been involved in doping violations a number of times with his horses. He has been good or the past 3 years, though, and all his focus is now getting the Triple Crown for owner Paul Reddam, who purchased the horse for a mere $400,000.
Preakness Outlook
Nyquist will enter the Preakness as the heavy favorite, and for good reason. You get the sense that this is his race to lose, and that if he has a clean trip, he will be two-thirds of the way to the Triple Crown.
