Preakness 2022: Rich Strike will be in the 8-1 range for second leg of Triple Crown
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Rich Strike won’t be 80-1 in the Preakness like he was in winning the Kentucky Derby – but he won’t be among the program favorites, either. Pimlico oddsmaker Keith Feustle said this week that Rich Strike will be 8-1 “or maybe even a touch higher” on his morning line, depending on who’s in and who’s out when entries are drawn Monday for the May 21 Preakness at Pimlico in Baltimore.
“From the public’s perspective, I think Rich Strike will fall through the cracks again a little, even as the Derby winner,” Feustle said.
There’s precedent for bettors to view a bombs-away Derby winner with skepticism when he runs back two weeks later in the Preakness. It’s been more than 50 years since Canonero II – a stunning winner of the 1971 Derby as a member of the mutuel field – was bet down to $3.40-1 in winning the Preakness that fans have shown that much respect for a Derby winner who had been so lightly regarded beforehand.
Since then, three horses have run back in the Preakness following similarly huge Derby upsets. Charismatic (31-1 in the Derby) won the 1999 Preakness at $8.40-1, Giacomo (50-1 Derby) was third in the 2005 Preakness at 6-1, and Mine That Bird (50-1 Derby) was second in the 2009 Preakness at 6-1.
Epicenter, second to Rich Strike by three-quarters of a length as the 4-1 favorite in the Derby last Saturday, definitely will be the favorite on the Pimlico line, said Feustle, “probably right around 9-5, depending on who else is in. If Zandon runs,” as is being considered by trainer Chad Brown after the colt was a close third in the Derby, “that would bump up the price on Epicenter a little. I’d definitely make Zandon the second choice if he goes, followed by Early Voting and even Secret Oath before you get to Rich Strike.”
Meanwhile, from his Mercury training center on the outskirts of Lexington, trainer Eric Reed said early Wednesday that he intends to send Rich Strike back to Churchill Downs for “three or four days” of galloping prior to making the long trip to Maryland.
“As soon as he gets to Churchill, he changes,” Reed said. “When he gets back to Churchill, he’ll be back in race mode, not letdown mode. I could only give him two days off here at the farm – he was wanting to do so much, I couldn’t even graze him. The horse is ready to run right back.”
Rich Strike, owned by the RED TR-Racing of Oklahoma businessman Rick Dawson, returned to light training Tuesday at Mercury, Reed’s longtime home base, then was sent through a routine gallop again there Wednesday morning and was scheduled to do so again Thursday. After being vanned Thursday afternoon to Churchill, the colt will gallop there Friday, Saturday, Sunday, “and maybe Monday,” said Reed, depending on when the colt needs to be loaded for the 11-hour van ride to Maryland. There will not be a breeze between the two races.
Reed, 57, has raced horses at a wide variety of tracks in a training career dating to 1985, but never at Pimlico. In fact, he was unaware that the Derby winner traditionally occupies Stall 40 at the stakes barn housing Preakness starters.
“I’m going wherever they tell me to go,” he said with a laugh.
After Rich Strike trained Wednesday, Reed and his father, retired trainer Herbert Reed, went fishing at a private lake near the farm. It has been an absolute whirlwind for Reed and his family since the Derby.
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“We go behind Ken Tyson’s place there in Sadieville,” said Reed. “He’s got a little seven-acre lake full of bass and crappie.”
In Baltimore, fourth-place Derby finisher Simplification became the first Preakness runner to bed down on the Pimlico grounds following an overnight van ride from Churchill. The colt arrived about 5 a.m. Eastern time Tuesday with Jesus “Chino” Prado, the longtime assistant to trainer Antonio Sano, accompanying him.
“Our horse feels good,” Prado said.
As of Wednesday morning, Pimlico racing officials were maintaining a working list of 11 3-year-olds for the 147th Preakness, the middle jewel of the Triple Crown. Besides those previously mentioned, the other prospects are Un Ojo, Skippylongstocking, Shake Em Loose, and the Kenny McPeek pair of Creative Minister and Rattle N Roll.
Ethereal Road, an initial Preakness prospect for D. Wayne Lukas, is being diverted instead to the Sir Barton at Pimlico the same day.
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147th Preakness, Grade 1, $1.5 million, 1 3/16 miles, May 21 |
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| Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Last Race |
| Creative Minister | Kenny McPeek | Brian Hernandez, Jr. | CD alw, 1st |
| Early Voting | Chad Brown | Jose Ortiz | Wood Memorial, 2nd |
| Epicenter | Steve Asmussen | Joel Rosario | Ky Derby, 2nd |
| Rattle N Roll | Kenny McPeek | Corey Lanerie | Blue Grass, 6th |
| Rich Strike | Eric Reed | Sonny Leon | Ky Derby, 1st |
| Secret Oath | D. Wayne Lukas | Luis Saez | Ky Oaks, 1st |
| Shake Em Loose | Rodolfo Sanchez-Salomon | Charlie Marquez | Tesio, 3rd |
| Simplification | Antonio Sano | John Velazquez | Ky Derby, 4th |
| Skippylongstocking | Saffie Joseph, Jr. | Junior Alvarado | Wood Memorial, 3rd |
| Un Ojo | Ricky Courville | Ramon Vazquez | Ark Derby, 8th |
| Zandon | Chad Brown | Flavien Prat | Ky Derby, 3rd |