2023 Preakness Stakes Exacta, Trifecta, and Superfecta Picks

Previous Betting News

The second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes, is now just a few days away, with the race set to go on Saturday, May 19. As it stands right now, there are only going to be 8 horses on the track for this one, with the performance of Justify in the Kentucky Derby causing many trainers to skip this race in favor of the Belmont Stakes in a couple of weeks. The smaller field would suggest that you have a better shot at placing a winning 2018 Preakness Stakes Betting ticket, but things don’t necessarily play out that way.

The Preakness Stakes is a race that has become known as a horse racing betting slip killer, as it’s often the longshots that come good. Keep in mind that in 142 years, only 23 horses have won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes.

2018 Preakness Stakes Betting Picks: Exacta, Trifecta & Superfecta

• When: May 19, 2018
• Where: Pimlico Race Course, Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
• Distance: 1 3⁄16 mi (9.5 furlongs; 1,900 m)
• Surface: Dirt
• Purse: $1.5 million

Exacta Play at the Preakness Stakes

While the historical data places a big question mark on Justify heading into this race, the reality is that he is far and away the best horse in this small field. If he runs his race, he should win the Preakness Stakes and take the next step towards the Triple Crown. With that in mind, I am playing him on top in all my wagers.

Okay, so now that we have a winner pegged, who do we place in the second spot? I like to improve my odds by choosing two horses here, although you could totally hedge your bets by playing Justify with every other horse in the field. Given that we are going to have a small field here, you are not looking at a major investment, and you have an opportunity to cash a nice winning ticket if one of those longshots takes second place.

If you want to play a straight exacta, I would play Justify with Quip. At only a dollar to wager, you would still make a tidy little profit, assuming Quip stays at his current odds of 16/1.

Trifecta Play at the Preakness Stakes

Again, you can save yourself some money by playing Justify on top in your exacta 2018 Preakness Stakes betting slip. I then like to cover each of the next two finishing positions with 3 horses. Your slip would look like this – 1 with 2,3,4 with 2,3,4, with the post positions being the numbers that you use on your slip.

Betting that way would cost you just $6 for a $1 stake. This would mean playing Justify with Quip, Good Magic, and Sporting Chance. Alternatively, if you have a little bit extra in your bankroll, you might want to play Justify on top with all the other horses in the field, which would be a Justify with all with all, at a cost of $30 for a $1 stake.

Superfecta Play at the Preakness Stakes

Picking the exact order of finish for the top 4 is no easy feat, which is why I often just play a straight wager here. There are countless different ways to box and wheel this particular bet, but the more permutations you put in, the more you are going to pay.

With a field this small, you may not get the value you desire by going that route. For the superfecta wager for the Preakness Stakes, I would have the horses in this order: Justify, Quip, Good Magic, Sporting Chance. If you are looking to box or get creative, I would consider adding Bravazo to this Preakness Stakes Betting ticket.

Last 10 Preakness Stakes Winners

• 2017: Cloud Computing
• 2016: Exaggerator
• 2015: American Pharoah
• 2014: California Chrome
• 2013: Oxbow
• 2012: I’ll Have Another
• 2011: Shackleford
• 2010: Lookin At Lucky
• 2009: Rachel Alexandra
• 2008: Big Brown

Previous Betting News

Picking the winner of a big race is always fun, but it is not always particularly rewarding financially. Always Dreaming won big at the Kentucky Derby, and he is set to go off as a pretty big favorite in the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico this coming Saturday. His current odds sit at 4/5, which means you are not going to get a ton of value for your money.

Click Here For More 2017 Preakness Stakes Betting Odds

If you are looking to cash in big without spending a ton of money, then you need to turn your attention to the exotics. There is the possibility of big payouts here, especially if you can get one of the longshot picks in the money, which is exactly what I think will happen this weekend. Let’s take a moment to break down some potential exotic picks.

Exacta, Trifecta & Superfecta Picks For 2017 Preakness Stakes

The Preakness Stakes Exacta

There are some who believe that Always Dreaming (#4) is a certainty to win after his Kentucky Derby showing, but I am not so sure. Classic Empire (#5) had a horrible trip at Churchill Down, but still managed to get up late to finish 4th. We are looking at a much smaller field here, and that means less chance of getting bumped or stuck in traffic. With a clean ride, I think Classic Empire gets up to win, with Always Dreaming coming in second, giving us an exacta play of 4-5. This would not be a particularly big payout, so you may want to take a run at a longshot in hopes that he can spoil the party. I’m looking at Hence (#3) for reasons which I will explain shortly. If you play 3 horse, go with an exacta box of 3-4-5. If any of those 3 horses finish first and second, you win.

The Preakness Stakes Trifecta

Picking first and second correctly is tough, and it only gets more difficult when trying to go with the top 3. I think that Always Dreaming and Classic Empire look to be a shoe-in to land in the money, which means you need to pick a horse that will finish behind those two. The one that jumps out to me is Hence. You can look at his 11th place Derby finish and not be totally convinced of his ability, but he looked uncomfortable from the start, and did not seem to like the sloppy track. He had a big win at the Sunland Derby earlier this year, which came after a poor performance in his prior outing. Similar scenario here. I would add Lookin at Lee (#9) to create a 4-horse exacta box of 3-4-5-9.

The Preakness Stakes Superfecta

Now that we have our top 3 horses nailed down for the Preakness, we need to choose one more to add to our superfecta ticket. When I play the superfecta, I usually go with a 4-horse box, simply because it starts to get a little expensive when you add more. I would play the same 3-4-5-9 box as the trifecta, and may run a second ticket where I swap out Looking at Lee with Cloud Computing (#2).