2026 Preakness Stakes Post Position Draw: Full Field Set for Saturday at Laurel Park

The post positions are in. The 151st Preakness Stakes goes Saturday, May 16 at Laurel Park — and for the first time in 151 years, it won't be run at Pimlico Race Course, currently under a $400 million reconstruction. The draw was held Monday afternoon, and the field is officially set.

Taj Mahal is the 7/2 morning-line favorite. The field is wide open — and with Incredibolt joining as a late Derby shipper (more on that below), connections are confident enough in the spot to haul ten hours from Churchill Downs to Laurel. Post positions matter more this year than almost any Preakness in recent memory, given the geometry of Laurel's tighter oval.

The Full Field

Fourteen horses will go to the gate Saturday (Silent Tactic and Cherokee Nation both scratched after the draw was set). Here's the confirmed lineup with morning-line odds:

• Taj Mahal — 7/2 ML (Trainer: Brittany Russell, Jockey: Sheldon Russell)
• Iron Honor — 8/1 (Trainer: Chad Brown, Jockey: Flavien Prat)
• Chip Honcho — 10/1 (Trainer: Steve Asmussen, Jockey: Jose Ortiz)
• Napoleon Solo — 12/1 (Trainer: Chad Summers, Jockey: Paco Lopez)
• Pretty Boy Miah — 21/1 (Trainer: Jeremiah Engelhart)
• Ocelli — 22/1 (Trainer: D. Whitworth Beckman, Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione)
• Talkin — 25/1 (Trainer: Danny Gargan)
• The Hell We Did — 30/1 (Trainer: Todd Fincher)
• Crupper — 30/1 (Trainer: Donnie Von Hemel, Jockey: Junior Alvarado)
• Corona de Oro — 30/1 (Trainer: Dallas Stewart, Jockey: John Velazquez)
• Bull by the Horns — 30/1 (Trainer: Saffie Joseph Jr.)
• Great White — 50/1 (Trainer: John Ennis)
• Incredibolt — TBD (Trainer: Riley Mott, Jockey: Jaime Torres) — late entry, 6th in the 2026 Kentucky Derby

The Favorite: Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal enters as the most deserving favorite in this field. The Brittany Russell trainee is undefeated in three starts — all at Laurel Park — including a dominant 8.25-length score in the Federico Tesio Stakes on April 18. He knows this track. He's trained over this surface. And he's got the class to back it up.

The storyline behind him is compelling too. If Russell wins, she becomes the first female trainer ever to win the Preakness Stakes. That's not handicapping noise — it's just context. Taj Mahal deserves the favorite's tab on his own merits regardless.

At 7/2, there's still value here depending on post position and pace setup. He's not an automatic fade just because he's the chalk.

The Main Threats

Iron Honor (8/1) is the most compelling alternative. Chad Brown rarely misses in Triple Crown races when he shows up, Flavien Prat takes over the mount, and Brown is removing the blinkers for this start — a trainer adjustment that frequently precedes a performance jump. He finished seventh as the beaten favorite in the Wood Memorial, which was disappointing, but connections clearly believe a fresh setup fixes him. At 8/1 he has real upside.

Chip Honcho (10/1) gives Steve Asmussen another live contender. Jose Ortiz reunites with the horse for the Preakness — a booking that signals confidence from the connections. Asmussen knows how to fire horses fresh off a mid-tier prep, and Ortiz is one of the most reliable riders in the country in Grade I spots.

Napoleon Solo (12/1) won the Champagne Stakes (G1) as a two-year-old. His three-year-old campaign has been uneven, but Chad Summers has him here for a reason and Paco Lopez keeps the mount. A horse with a G1 win on his resume at this price in a wide-open field is worth noting in exotics.

The Ocelli Longshot Angle

Ocelli ran third in the Kentucky Derby at 70-1. He's entered here at 22/1 and is a maiden — he has never won a race. If he wins the Preakness, he would be the first maiden winner since Refund in 1888. That's not a reason to bet him or fade him. It's a reason to look at the pace setup carefully.

Tyler Gaffalione is a savvy rider who will find a ground-saving trip if the pace sets up. In a race with multiple speed horses, a horse like Ocelli who can rate and close has a real path. At 22/1 in exactas and trifectas, he's worth including.

The John Velazquez Storyline

John Velazquez, 54 years old, rides Corona de Oro. He won the 2023 Preakness on National Treasure and remains one of the most decorated Triple Crown jockeys alive. A win Saturday would add another chapter to one of the greatest careers in the sport's history. Corona de Oro is 30/1 and a long price for a reason — but you don't bet against Velazquez in a spot like this on principle.

Late Entry: Incredibolt Joins from the Derby

Breaking Monday: Incredibolt will be entered into the Preakness, making him the only horse in the field who ran in the Kentucky Derby. He finished sixth at Churchill Downs and trainer Riley Mott liked what he saw from the rest of the field enough to ship him east — a 10-hour van ride from Churchill Downs to Laurel Park, arriving Wednesday morning.

"The horse is doing extremely well. He came out of the Derby in good shape, and we have been clocking the field of horses and we thought it would be the right opportunity to try the horse back." — Riley Mott

Jaime Torres, who already has a Preakness win on his resume (Seize the Grey in 2024), stays aboard. That jockey-trainer combo knows how to get a horse to the wire at this distance.

The key question for Incredibolt is pace. He was a non-factor in the Derby, but the Derby field was historically deep. Against this group — softer competition without Golden Tempo or Crude Velocity — he's worth a second look. A fresh horse with a winning jockey who just ran in the biggest race of the year is never a throwout, especially at a price. Odds will be assigned once he's officially entered.

Why Post Positions Matter More Than Usual

We wrote about this in our field preview, but it bears repeating: Laurel Park's one-mile oval is tighter than Pimlico's configuration, with a notably shorter homestretch (1,089 feet at Laurel vs. approximately 1,152 feet at Pimlico). That means:

• Horses running wide burn more ground — and at Laurel, the penalty is steeper than at most tracks
• Rail-saving, inside trips are worth more here than in a normal Preakness
• Posts 1 through 5 get a meaningful geometric edge over posts 9 and wider

Taj Mahal winning an inside post would entrench his status as the right play. Any top contender drawing wide — particularly Iron Honor or Chip Honcho — needs to overcome a real real-estate disadvantage. Factor post position into your final handicapping before wagering.

Our Lean Heading Into the Week

Taj Mahal is the correct favorite and shouldn't be dismissed just because he's the chalk. Iron Honor is our preferred alternative — Brown/Prat/blinkers-off is a powerful combination in a Grade I, and 8/1 is a fair price. Incredibolt is the most interesting story at a price: the only Derby horse in the field, fresh, with a winning Preakness jockey aboard.

Full pace projections, post-position-adjusted analysis, and our exotic ticket builds will be live on The Edge Thursday morning. Free picks for the Preakness will post here and on our Preakness hub page Friday night ahead of Saturday's race.

---

Check our Pimlico track page for historical Preakness data and follow the full 2026 Preakness Stakes coverage hub all week.