My Best Preakness Stakes Winners Articles | Horse Betting

By: Richard Bleuze

My Best Preakness Stakes Winners

My best Preakness Stakes-winning horses of the past 50 years include the following:  Secretariat, Seattle Slew, Spectacular Bid, Affirmed, Northern Dancer, and Smarty Jones.  There are many other great horses that could be included such as Sunday Silence, Canonero II, Point Given, Risen Star, and Damascus.

Since its inception in 1873, many champions have entered the starting gate for the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Racecourse.  Among these horses are eleven Triple Crown winners and countless Kentucky Derby winners. Deciding which are the best horses to have won the Preakness Stakes, as you can imagine, is not an easy task.  Everyone has a different opinion.  However, my best Preakness Stakes winners are below.  Before I waste anymore time, my best Preakness Stakes winners in the modern era are:

#1 Secretariat - What could I possibly say about Big Red that has not already been said by horse bettors?  Secretariat is easily one of the best horses to have ever lived, Preakness winner or not.  Secretariat is one of the few Triple Crown winners.  Secretariat is the son of Bold Ruler, who had a heart that weighed a massive 22 pounds.  Secretariat broke the track record in all three Triple Crown races, but due to a timing malfunction his Preakness time was not considered to be official.  Secretariat went on to win the Marlboro Cup in a world record time of 1:45 2/5 for nine furlongs.  In his first start on the turf, Secretariat won the Grade I Man O’ War Stakes en route to a track record time of 2:24 4/5.  Some of his best known offsprings include Risen Star and Lady’s Secret.  In my opinion, and the opinion of many experts, that Secretariat is the greatest horse who ever lived.

#2 Seattle Slew - The son of Bold Reasoning is the only colt to ever win the Triple Crown while maintaining an undefeated record.  Seattle Slew managed to hold off the second place finisher Iron Constitution to win by 1 ½ lengths in the Preakness Stakes.  Other wins for Seattle Slew include a triumph in the Marlboro Cup and a win in the Woodward Stakes.  Seattle Slew produced the prolific sire A.P. Indy, and Kentucky Derby winner Swale.

#3 Spectacular Bid - The legendary Bill Shoemaker, from Santa Anita Racetrack, says that Spectacular Bid is the best horse he ever rode.  Spectacular Bid won the Preakness Stakes by 5 ½ lengths in a time faster than Seattle Slew or Affirmed.  The Belmont Stakes saw a freak accident in which Spectacular Bid stepped on a pin, jeopardizing his career and causing him to lose the Belmont and miss the Triple Crown.  Spectacular Bid would have almost assuredly won the Triple Crown had it not been for this.  Spectacular Bid after this freak accident still continued to flourish, as he won the Strub Series and took the Santa Anita Handicap.  His progeny would go on to win more than 47 stakes races.

#4 Affirmed -   Affirmed is well known for his epic rivalry with the brilliant Alydar.  Both finished 1-2 in each of the Triple Crown races, and Affirmed held him off by just a neck when he won the Preakness Stakes.  Affirmed would go on to win races such as the Strub Stakes, Santa Anita Handicap, Jockey Club Gold Cup, and the Woodward Stakes.  Affirmed was a success at stud, and his progeny include 11 champions and over 80 stakes winners.

#5 Northern Dancer - This colt went unsold as a yearling with a reserve price of $25,000.  Northern Dancer won many races, including the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.  Northern Dancer has a great race record of 18-14-2-2  that speaks to his ability as a racehorse.  Norther Dancer is remembered today as one of the best Canadian bred horses of all time, and as a prolific sire. He sired over 140 stakes winners, and produced the first $10,000,000 yearling, Snaafi Dancer. His best son is undoubtedly Epsom Derby winner Nijinksky II.

#6 Smarty Jones - Many horse bettors thought that Smarty Jones would become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed did it in 1979.  Smarty Jones won the Kentucky Derby, and won the Preakness Stakes by a record margin of 11 ½ lengths.  However, in the Belmont Stakes Smarty Jones yielded to Birdstone in the stretch while finishing second. Smarty Jones had career earnings of $7,613,155 even though he only raced nine times.

Just so you know, I looked for the best horses through the span of their career and not just their best Preakness wins.  Although, these horses did win the Preakness Stakes.  Thus, I consider then my best Preakness horse winners in general. 

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