Brush Up on Your Preakness Stakes Trivia

The First Running: A crowd of 12,000 gathered for the first running of the Preakness Stakes in 1873. The winner of the race was Survivor, who won the race by ten lengths. The total purse for the race was $2,050. The day of racing consisted of three races, very different from the 13-race marathon day of racing we will see on Saturday.

Taking Home the Hardware: The winning owner is awarded the Woodlawn Vase, which is the most valuable trophy in sports. The trophy was created by Tiffany & Co. and was once buried during the Civil War so it would not be melted down.

No Roses or Black Eyed Susans: The Derby winner is draped in roses, and the Preakness winner is adorned with the Maryland state flower, which is the Black Eyed Susan. Or does he or she? Actually, the Black Eyed Susan only blooms in the summer and fall and the Preakness winner actually is draped with Viking daisies, which are craftily disguised to look like the state flower.

Checking the Calendar: The Preakness was actually run before the Belmont Stakes were run on the same day. In 1918, the race was run in divisions, which meant there were two winners that year.

The Master in the Irons: Jockey Eddie Arcaro, who was nicknamed “The Master” is the leading all time jockey in the Preakness, winning the race six times. The leading active jockey is Kent Desormeaux, who won aboard Real Quiet (1998) and Big Brown (2008).

Preakness Not for Ladies?: While four fillies have won the Preakness, there have been only two female jockeys who have had mounts in the race. Andrea Seefeldt finished seventh aboard Looking in 1994, and Patricia Cooksey was the first female jockey, checking in sixth on Tajawa in 1985. No female trainer has won the race. The best finish was longshot Magic Weisner, who finished second in 2002 for Maryland based trainer Nancy Alberts.

A “Smart” Win: Smarty Jones holds the record for largest winning margin, beating the field in 2004 by 11 1/2 lengths. That broke a record set by Survivor, who won by ten lengths in the first running. Funny Cide won by 9 ¾ lengths in 2003. Six times the race has been decided by a nose, and another eleven were decided by a head.

Lighting Up the Toteboard: While the Derby has seen two longshots return over $100 to win just this decade, the largest price in the history of the Preakness occurred in 1975. Master Derby upset the field, returning $48.80 for a $2 wager.

Winning Sans “Equipment”: Funny Cide became the seventh gelding to win the Preakness when he crossed the wire 9 ¾ lengths in front in 2003. No geldings won the race from 1920 to 1934 for the simple reason that geldings were not permitted in the race. That hardly seems fair.

Going Coast to Coast: Pimlico is known as a “speed favoring” racing strip, although it is more myth than fact. Only nine winners of the race led the race at all points of call since 1945, two in the past 27 years: Aloma’s Ruler (1982) and most recently Louis Quatorze (1996).

Lukas, Baffert Lead Way: Among active trainers, D. Wayne Lukas (five) and Bob Baffert (four) lead the way in Preakness wins. The top conditioner of all time in the Preakness is R. Wyndham Walden, who trained seven winners, the last coming in 1888.