The Triple Crown is the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. For years, the trifecta of races has been synonymous with Churchill Downs, Pimlico Race Course, and Belmont Park.
Not anymore. On May 9, 2026, the streak of Preakness Stakes being held at Pimlico will end after 116 years. The facility is being rebuilt and this year’s race will take place at Laurel Park, another Maryland track. To add to the oddities, the Belmont will once again be run at Saratoga as the Long Island track continues to be rebuilt.
No one will have to worry if there will be an asterisk if a horse were to win the Triple Crown in races at Churchill, Laurel and Saratoga. For the third time in five years, the Derby winner is skipping the middle jewel. Hard to blame Golden Tempo’s connection when all of 4,800 will be in attendance on Saturday. That’s the number the crowd has been capped at.
Belmont will be ready later this year, in plenty of time for next year’s Triple Crown. Pimlico is under construction and the plan is for it to be set, too, for the 2027 Preakness. What shape those races will take remains in flux. Will the Preakness move to three weeks after the Kentucky Derby, as has been suggested? Will the NYRA play ball and back up the Belmont a week? Those politics will play out later.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, 14 horses will enter the starting gate for the 1 3/16 miles Preakness. Three ran in the Kentucky Derby: Incredibolt, Orcelli and Robusta. They finished sixth, third and 14th, respectively in the Run for the Roses.
There have been horses who went on to win the Triple Crown that have won at Laurel Park. Count Fleet, Citation, Secretariat, and Affirmed all won the Laurel Futurity, a stake for 2-year-olds, the year before they went on to make racing history.
The historic run will be temporary for Laurel Park. Once Pimlico is back up and running, Laurel is expected to be converted to a fulltime training facility. If Maryland horse racing can navigate the political issues that have threatened that possibility.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why Preakness is at Laurel Park, not Pimlico in 2026
