All 10 Preakness Starters Settle In at Pimlico

Start the clock.

All 10 entrants were in their assigned stalls at Pimlico Race Course ahead of morning exercise May 12 as final preparations kicked into high gear for the May 15 Preakness Stakes (G1).

One day after Tuesday's delayed post position draw, each of the 10 starters visited the racetrack for morning exercise over the racing surface that will decide the second leg of the Triple Crown three days from now.

As it has been since the first Saturday in May, trainer Bob Baffert's starters were the centers of attention. Both Medina Spirit , who won the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) but faces a possible disqualification for a positive post-race drug test, and grade 2 winner Concert Tour  wheeled around the track for a 1 1/2-mile gallop.

"(They) looked beautiful on the track. They got over the track very well. It looks like a really good surface here so we're happy with that," said assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes. "Maybe we'll try to get in some morning schooling when they allow us. Hopefully that's today, but we're working on it. We'll probably do the exact same things tomorrow."

Less than 24 hours earlier, the Baffert horses were installed as the two morning-line favorites for the 1 3/16-mile test. Zedan Racing Stables' Medina Spirit, who drew post 3, was pegged as the 9-5 choice in the odds, while Gary and Mary West's homebred Concert Tour, who landed post 10, stands as the 5-2 second choice.

As a sign of how the duo stands out over the other eight starters, the third choice in the wagering, Winchell Thoroughbreds' Midnight Bourbon , was priced at 5-1 and no one else is less than 10-1.

"The posts are good," Barnes said. "That's how our horses run. They both try to get away from there (at the break) and stay clean to give yourself a fair shot."

Aside from the draw, Tuesday featured more melodrama in the Medina Spirit saga as Baffert, after initially saying Medina Spirit was not administered the corticosteroid betamethasone that turned up in the post-race test, announced the son of Protonico   had been treated with an anti-fungal ointment, Otomax, due to dermatitis. One of the ingredients in Otomax is betamethasone.

After that, Baffert and his legal representatives reached an agreement with the Maryland Jockey Club and its parent group, 1/ST Racing, which operate Pimlico, to allow blood testing, monitoring, and medical record review of his two Preakness starters and Beautiful Gift , a starter in the May 14 George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (G2). Blood samples for each horse were drawn and test results are expected to be announced by Friday, raising the possibility that one or more of the horses could be scratched prior to their race if there is another positive test.

Barnes had no comment Wednesday when asked if Medina Spirit was still being treated for dermatitis. Baffert has not traveled to Baltimore and it is uncertain if he will be on hand for Saturday's race.

Among the final arrivals were trainer Chad Brown's duo of Klaravich Stables' Crowded Trade  and Risk Taking . Crowded Trade, a More Than Ready   colt who was third in the Wood Memorial Stakes Presented by Resorts World Casino (G2) and second in the Gotham Stakes (G3), will break from post 4 and Risk Taking, a son of Medaglia d'Oro   who won the Withers Stakes (G3) then was seventh on a heavy track as the 2-1 favorite in the Wood, has post 9.

"They settled in OK, and they both got over the track well today," Brown said from New York. "The posts are good. For Crowded Trade, it's perfect. He's inside like Cloud Computing   (who won the 2017 Preakness for Brown and Klaravich and William Lawrence from post 2) was. I hope we can work out a good tracking trip with him. With Risk Taking, he's out there, but I hope there's enough early pace that the field will string out a bit so he can drop in before the first turn."

Midnight Bourbon, a handsome son of Tiznow  who was sixth in the Kentucky Derby after a slow start negated his early speed, also made his first appearance on the track Wednesday.

"He went over the racetrack beautifully this morning, so no excuses until necessary," trainer Steve Asmussen said.

In a key rider switch, Mike Smith, who rode Midnight Bourbon in the Kentucky Derby, will be aboard Concert Tour Saturday.

"I would suggest that Mike thought he had a better chance to win on Concert Tour than Midnight Bourbon … But that would be his question," Asmussen said. 

Irad Ortiz Jr. will ride the Lecomte Stakes (G3) winner in the 1 3/16-mile Preakness.

If Midnight Bourbon turns up the pressure on Medina Spirit and Concert Tour in the early going, it will no doubt bring a smile to the face of trainer Michael McCarthy, who is sending out the late-running Rombauer  for owners John and Diane Fradkin.

Winner of the El Camino Real Derby on a synthetic surface, Rombauer was third behind Essential Quality  in the April 3 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2), which was his last start.

"His best races have been when he has been able to close," McCarthy said. "He was a little bit farther back than I would have liked in the El Camino Real Derby, but he was able to get the job done. He was a little bit closer than I would have liked in the Blue Grass. He's not so much pace-dependent, but I would like to see them go fairly swiftly up front, obviously."

Rombauer, a homebred son of Twirling Candy  , galloped 1 1/4 miles Wednesday.

"The horse is a pretty easy keeper," McCarthy said. "He shipped in good order and got over the racetrack fine this morning."

Entries: Preakness S. (G1)

Pimlico Race Course, Saturday, May 15, 2021, Race 13

• Grade I
• 1 3/16m
• Dirt
• $1,000,000
• 3 yo
• 6:47 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Ram (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	126	D. Wayne Lukas	30/1
2	2Keepmeinmind (KY)	David Cohen	126	Robertino Diodoro	15/1
3	3Medina Spirit (FL)	John R. Velazquez	126	Bob Baffert	9/5
4	4Crowded Trade (KY)	Javier Castellano	126	Chad C. Brown	10/1
5	5Midnight Bourbon (KY)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	126	Steven M. Asmussen	5/1
6	6Rombauer (KY)	Flavien Prat	126	Michael W. McCarthy	12/1
7	7France Go de Ina (KY)	Joel Rosario	126	Hideyuki Mori	20/1
8	8Unbridled Honor (KY)	Luis Saez	126	Todd A. Pletcher	15/1
9	9Risk Taking (KY)	Jose L. Ortiz	126	Chad C. Brown	15/1
10	10Concert Tour (KY)	Mike E. Smith	126	Bob Baffert	5/2