Preakness Stakes Betting: Guide, Odds And Favorites

In Iowa, you can bet on the 2023 Preakness Stakes at Prairie Meadows in Altoona and various off-track betting (OTB) facilities inside Iowa casinos, retail sportsbooks, and at Q Casino, Iowa’s lone greyhound track.

Plus, you’ll be able to bet on the Preakness online through Iowa and mobile sportsbooks that offer online horse race betting.

Keep reading, and you should find everything you need to know about betting on the 2023 Preakness Stakes in Iowa, including the latest odds and race details, how to bet online, and where to do it right here in Iowa.

How to Bet On the Preakness Stakes in Iowa

Iowa allows online horse race betting, which means you have several options for betting on the 2023 Preakness Stakes online. Horse betting apps remain the best and most convenient way to bet on the Preakness.

You can download the apps on most Android or Apple mobile devices. After that, it’s a matter of signing up for an account, depositing funds in your account, and clicking on the bets you want to make ahead of the race.

Your preferred Iowa online and mobile sportsbooks will most likely take bets on the Preakness and most other horse races. Check with the online sportsbook for your options first to be safe.

Preakness Stakes Betting Options

Interest is heightened, which means the pari-mutuel betting pools are larger, but for the most part, betting on the Preakness is the same as betting on any horse race. That means it’s easy and begins with the following basic bets:

• Win: Bet on any horse to win.
• Place: Bet on any horse to win or finish second
• Show: Bet on any horse to win, finish second or third.
• Exacta: Bet on two horses to finish first and second in that order. Or, box your exacta, placing two bets and the same two horses, flipping the finishing order.
• Trifecta: Bet on three horses to finish first, second, and third in that order. Or if you can box your trifecta, placing bets on all the different combinations of finishing order for the same three horses.
• Superfecta: Bet on four horses to finish first, second, third, and fourth in that order. Or, box your superfecta, can be boxed, placing bets on all the different combinations of finishing order for the same four horses.

How to place a wheel bet

You can also “wheel” your exacta, trifecta, and superfecta bets. Wheeling involves fixing certain horses’ finishing positions. Then you can put together multiple betting combinations by adding different horses to later finishing positions. You key specific horses in the top one, two, or three and mix in various possibilities in later finishing positions.

2023 Preakness Stakes Odds

The Preakness Stakes is traditionally the second leg of thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown, held on the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, MD. It is preceded by the Kentucky Derby and followed by the Belmont Stakes.

There has been a Preakness run at Pimlico annually since 1873, and it is the race that allows the Kentucky Derby winner to win the Triple Crown at the Belmont Stakes. Take a look at the 2023 Preakness Stakes Odds.

2023 Preakness Stakes Favorites

The Preakness’ favorites usually emerge from the first leg of the Triple Crown, the Kentucky Derby.

Held traditionally on the first Saturday in May, two weeks ahead of the Preakness, the 2023 Kentucky Derby was Saturday, May 6, 2023. Mage was named this year’s winner of the Kentucky Debry and will be making a run at the Triple Crown.

Road to the Preakness Stakes

The field at the Preakness Stakes is typically a total of 14 3-year-old thoroughbreds, weighing 126 pounds or less.

Barring any injury or other unforeseen circumstances, the field usually includes the winner of the Kentucky Derby making a run at the Triple Crown. Most of the other horses in the Kentucky Derby field also compete. However, the Preakness also includes horses that have qualified by winning certain Maryland Jockey Club series races. These include:

• $125,000 Federico Tesio at Laurel Park
• $300,000 Oaklawn Invitational at Oaklawn Park
• $100,000 El Camino Real Derby at Golden Gate Fields

Preakness InfieldFest Music Festival

Pimlico hosts something called the Preakness InfieldFest Music Festival at the track on Preakness race day.

There’s music, food and beverages, and access to the betting windows. The 2020 InfieldFest event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the landmark experience is back on with performances by world renowned artists.

Greatest Moments in Preakness Stakes History

Five moments stand out as the greatest in the Preakness Stakes’ rich history:

• 1973: Secretariat wins the Preakness, setting a record time that stands to this day.
• 1980: Codex wins the Preakness, bumping Kentucky Derby winner Genuine Risk on the final turn and ruining his chance at the Triple Crown.
• 2005: Afleet Alex wins the Preakness after a disappointing loss in the Kentucky Derby. The horse went on to win the Belmont, making his Derby run even more of a disappointment.
• 2015: American Pharoah wins the Preakness by seven lengths giving him a chance to win the Triple Crown at the Belmont. The horse went on to win the Belmont, becoming the first Triple Crown winner in close to 40 years.
• 2018: Justify wins the Preakness following his Kentucky Derby victory. Then, the horse went on to win the Triple Crown at the Belmont.

Preakness Stakes Records and Times

Secretariat holds the record for the fastest Preakness time in history, running the 1 3⁄16 miles in 1:53 in 1973.

Of course, his time was originally posted as 1:55, then changed to a Pimlico clocker’s time that was close to a second faster, before the Maryland Racing Commission decided in June 2012, based on replay and testimony evidence, that the two Daily Racing Form clockers who had him at 1:53 were correct.

Others have come close to Secretariat’s Preakness record, including:

• Tank’s Prospect: 1:53.4 (1985)
• Louis Quatorze: 1:53.4 (1996)
• Curlin: 1:53.46 (2007)
• GateDancer: 1:53.6 (1984)

Triple Crown

The Triple Crown of thoroughbred racing is a series of stakes races for 3-year-olds. It includes the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes. The races typically run in May and June, in that order, which makes the Preakness traditionally the second leg of the Triple Crown.

The first horse ever to win all three races was Sir Barton in 1919. Only 13 others have done it, including Justify in 2018 and American Pharoah in 2015. Before American Pharoah, it had been 37 years since thoroughbred racing saw a Triple Crown winner. A total of 23 horses have booked wins in the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes before failing to complete the Triple Crown in the Belmont.

Secretariat: The legend

Secretariat is widely considered one of the greatest racehorses in history. He has been enshrined in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. The 1973 Triple Crown winner set a record in each leg and his 1:53 at Pimlico still stands as the Preakness record today. That 1:53 is also the fastest time in any Triple Crown race in history. Secretariat also finished the Kentucky Derby in 1:59 ⅖ and the Belmont in 2:24.

Where to Bet On the Preakness Stakes Live in Iowa

Iowa has one horse racing facility with simulcast racing and pari-mutuel wagering. Preakness Stakes betting is available in person at the state’s only racetrack, Prairie Meadows and Q Casino:

Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino

• 1 Prairie Meadows Drive, Altoona; 515-967-1000

There’s also a greyhound racing facility with simulcast racing and pari-mutuel wagering:

Q Casino

• 1855 Greyhound Park Road, Dubuque; 563-582-3647

Iowa also has several casinos with sports and racebooks offering OTB services, including simulcast racing and pari-mutuel wagering: