FILE PHOTO: May 16, 2023; Baltimore, MD, USA; Preakness Stakes contender Mage trains Tuesday morning at Pimlico Race Track. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo
(Reuters) - Kentucky Derby winner Mage will be gunning for the middle jewel of U.S. thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown on Saturday at the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore where he will be the only horse who raced at Churchill Downs in the field.
Mage drew the third post for the eight-horse, 1 3/16-mile Preakness Stakes at Pimlico and is the 8-5 favourite.
"Right now I'm just trying to be present, stay not too high not too low in the emotions, and we have a big race coming and just focus on the horse and make him feel as happy as he can be," Mage's assistant trainer Gustavo Delgado Jr. said.
Brad Cox-trained First Mission, who will start from the eighth gate, was installed as the second favorite at 5-2 for the Preakness while Bob Baffert-trained National Treasure is the third betting choice at 4-1 and will break from the rail.
Ridden by Javier Castellano and at 15-1 odds, Mage won the Kentucky Derby and now all eyes will be on whether the chestnut colt can create some intrigue going into the June 10 Belmont Stakes, the final stop for the Crown.
A victory for Mage in the Preakness and Belmont Stakes would produce thoroughbred racing's 13th Triple Crown winner and the first since Justify in 2018.
Mage will be the only horse at the Preakness Stakes who also ran in the Kentucky Derby after it was decided earlier this week that Disarm, the Steve Asmussen-trained colt who finished fourth at Churchill Downs, would not run at Pimlico.
Mage used a late surge at the Kentucky Derby to overtake Two Phil's down the stretch and win by a length. With the win, Mage became only the fourth horse in 149 years to win the Kentucky Derby with only three previous starts.
The Preakness Stakes is the shortest of the three races that make up the Triple Crown, which puts extra emphasis on a solid start given there will be less time to make up ground.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
