Not since Bob Baffert in 2001 and 2002 has a trainer won the consecutive Preakness Stakes, a feat Chad Brown will attempt this year. He secured last year’s win through early voting and will ride Blazing Stevens in the 2023 Preakness Stakes field. The horse is rested having missed the Kentucky Derby despite qualifying. Blazing Stevens is 6-1, giving him the third-lowest odds for the 2023 Preakness Stakes. The 2023 Preakness Stakes release is Saturday at 7:01pm ET at Pimlico Race Course.
The only 2023 Preakness Stakes horses with lower 2023 Preakness Stakes odds than Blazing Sevens are favorite Mage (8-5) and Baffert-trained National Treasure (4-1). Before you start making predictions for the 2023 Preakness Stakes, check out elite horse racing handicapper Jody Demling’s 2023 Preakness Stakes tips and analysis.
Demling, a fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing, talking and betting on races for years, has crowned the Preakness winner nine times in the last 18 years and nailed his 2022 Preakness exacta. Demling is also competing in the 2023 Preakness Stakes, having won the Belmont Stakes winner in four of the last five years, including an Exacta in 2022 with Mo Donegal and Nest! He also named Flightline’s win at the Breeders’ Cup Classic last November.
In addition, he has beaten 10 of the last 15 Derby Oaks doubles at Churchill Downs. That means he’s had a ticket to the winners of both races in all but five of the last 15 attempts. Anyone who has followed him in these races is way up there.
As the 2023 Preakness Stakes draws closer, Demling is sharing his tips and predictions at SportsLine. Click here to see them.
Preakness Stakes 2023 Predictions for Mage, Blazing Sevens
A surprise: Demling has a large lead in Blazing Sevens despite being 6-1 outside the top two favorites. Coach Chad Brown’s win last year was based on a formula used for Blazing Sevens. Early Voting qualified for last year’s Kentucky Derby but missed the preakness race, which he won. Blazing Sevens also missed that year’s Kentucky Derby and was pointed to Preakness 148.
Outside of Brown, Blazing Sevens boasts connections and a pedigree that is the envy of many. His jockey, Irad Ortiz Jr., has won the Eclipse Award for Best Rider in the Country four times and is on his way to a fifth this year. In addition, the horse was sired by Good Magic, the 2017 American two-year-old champion. Blazing Sevens has everything you would expect in a longshot horse, so he’s a name to keep in mind when betting on the Preakness Complete Stakes 2023. See here who else you can support.
Demling has also finalized his 2023 Kentucky Derby pick for Mage, the Kentucky Derby winner and 2023 Preakness Stakes favorite. The son of Good Magic and Big Brown mare Puca began his career as a three-year-old with a first win at Gulfstream Park on January 28th. He returned a month later and finished fourth against a packed field of the Fountain of Youth Stakes led by Champion Forte.
Mage showed improvement in his next start at the Florida Derby, with Forte needing a lead in the final furlong to beat Mage by some margin. After Forte’s failure at Churchill Downs, Mage showed another improvement in a Kentucky Derby win, repelling a poor start and finishing impressively. However, he was only the third horse in history to win the first two stages of the Triple Crown, after just three previous starts (Justify, Big Brown). Watch Demling’s shocking prediction for Mage here.
Kentucky Derby favorite Forte, who was axed just hours before the race, will not compete in the 2023 Preakness Stakes. He was placed on the veterinarian’s list on the day of the Kentucky Derby, and horses on that list will not be allowed to compete in upcoming races. Forte will be delisted in time for Preakness 2023, however access to the second jewel of the Triple Crown was on Monday 15th May.
Trainer Todd Pletcher originally told reporters he wanted clarity on the status of his star horses. Forte needs training and a blood test to be off the vet’s list, but after Monday’s 2023 Preakness Stakes post-draw, that didn’t matter as he wasn’t included in the field. The multiple Class 1 winner galloped 1 3/8 miles at Churchill Downs two days after being scratched by KHRC vets and could race in the future.
How to make tips and bets for the Preakness Stakes 2023
Demling’s first choice is an overlooked horse who is “a star in the making.” He also made a shocking prediction for Mage to claim a monumental Kentucky Derby victory. He only reveals which horses to bet on at SportsLine.
Who will win the 2023 Preakness Stakes? Where do Mage, First Mission, National Treasure and Red Route One end? And which overlooked horse is a must? Check out the latest 2023 Preakness Stakes odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Demling’s 2023 Preakness Stakes picks, all from the expert, who scored ten Derby Oaks doubles and nine of the last 18 Preakness winners .