With the field shrinking from 20 to nine from the Kentucky Derby to the 2022 Preakness Stakes, the strategy changes considerably as we head to the second leg of the Triple Crown on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course. Less traffic means speed generally rules the day, with 10 of the last 12 Preakness winners posting Beyer Speed Figures of 101 or higher. Tyler Gaffalione won the 2019 Preakness Stakes on War of Will and is the only jockey in the 2022 Preakness Stakes field who has previously won the race. However, he’ll be a long shot to make it 2-for-2 in the Run for the Black-Eyed Susans, with Happy Jack listed at 30-1 in the latest 2022 Preakness Stakes odds after a 14th-place run in the Kentucky Derby. Joe Rosario will be on 6-5 favorite Epicenter as he looks to complete the career Triple Crown a season after winning his first Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey. Post time for the Preakness 2022 is 7:01 p.m. ET. With so much to consider while making your 2022 Preakness Stakes picks, a little expert help can go a long way.
This will be the 147th Run for the Black-Eyed Susans and the weather at Pimlico Race Course is expected to be blisteringly hot, with the forecast calling for a high of 97 degrees and no precipitation expected in the leadup to the race. That means it will likely be a fast track for the fifth time in the last six Preakness Stakes runs. In the last 15 Preakness Stakes, 10 of the eventual winners were leading or within 3 1/2 lengths at the half-mile post, while only three horses rallied from the back half of the field. One of those winners was a known mudder on a sloppy track (Exaggerator in 2016) and another was able to take advantage of an unsustainable early pace (Curlin in 2007).
Given all the history, there’s a method to picking which horses to focus on for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets in a Preakness Stakes like this, and SportsLine expert Jody Demling knows what it is. He can help you make the best 2022 Preakness Stakes picks possible.
A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling has been on-point with his horse racing bets. In fact, this is the same handicapper who has called the Preakness winner nine times in the last 17 years. In the 2020 Preakness Stakes, Demling nailed the Swiss Skydiver-Authentic exacta.
He hit the exacta in the Wood Memorial in April. Last year, he hit the exacta, trifecta and superfecta in the Belmont Stakes. He’s also hit the Derby-Oaks double at Churchill Downs 10 times in the last 14 years, including this year’s massive upset with Rich Strike. That means he held a ticket with the winners of both the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby all but four times in his last 14 tries.
In addition, at one point in 2020, he picked the winners of six straight races: the Saudi Cup, Gotham Stakes, Rebel Stakes, Louisiana Derby, Florida Derby and Belmont Stakes. Anyone who has followed him on these races is way up. Now, he’s sharing all of his 2022 Preakness Stakes bets here.
Top 2022 Preakness Stakes expert picks
Here’s a refresher on these types of bets from SportsLine’s Jody Demling:
Preakness Stakes Exacta: Pick the first- and second-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 exacta returned $49.30 at the 2021 Preakness Stakes with Rombauer and Midnight Bourbon.
Preakness Stakes Trifecta: Pick the first-, second- and third-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 trifecta returned $162.70 at the 2021 Preakness Stakes with Rombauer, Midnight Bourbon and Medina Spirit.
Preakness Stakes Superfecta: Pick the first-, second-, third- and fourth-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 superfecta returned a colossal $1,025.50 at the 2021 Preakness Stakes with Rombauer, Midnight Bourbon, Medina Spirit and Keepmeinmind.
While Demling has no quibbles with the favorite status of Epicenter (6-5) and Early Voting (7-2), he plans to hold tickets with Secret Oath (9-2) as well as four double-digit underdogs who could really spice up the payouts. You can see his picks here.
How to make 2022 Preakness Stakes bets
Demling has specific recommendations for exacta, trifecta and superfecta wagers so you can cover all your bases at the Preakness Stakes 2022. He’s sharing them over at SportsLine.
So which horses do you take? And in what combinations? Visit SportsLine to get Demling’s picks for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets for the 2022 Preakness Stakes.
