Jusify Draws Post 7 for Preakness

Post positions were drawn late Wednesday afternoon for the Preakness Stakes (Grade 1) that will be run Saturday at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.

Justify, winner of the Kentucky Derby (Grade 1) on May 5, drew post 7 and was installed as the 1-2 morning line favorite for the Preakness.

Scheduled post on Saturday is 6:20 p.m. Eastern for the 1 3/16 mile stakes that is the second jewel of thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown for 3-year-olds. The 1 1/2 mile Belmont Stakes will be run on June 9.

Good Magic, who finished second in the 1 1/4 mile Kentucky Derby, drew post 5 and is second in the Preakness morning line at 3-1. Those odds are what a track's oddsmaker expects they will beat post time for a race.

  In the Kentucky Derby, Justify beat Good Magic by 2 1/4 lengths on a sloppy and sealed track after several rainy hours at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky,

The Weather Channel forecast is for a 90 percent chance of thunderstorms in Baltimore on Saturday.
Periods of heavy rain also are expected in the Baltimore area on Thursday and Friday.

Justify, Lone Sailor and Sporting Chance are the only Preakness entrants that have won a race on a track not listed as Fast.

In addition to the top two finishers, Bravazo (6th) and Lone Sailor (8th) are the only Kentucky Derby runners in the Preakness.

Quip, a colt that did not race in the Kentucky Derby, drew post 1 and at 12-1 is third in the Preakness morning line.

Quip won the 1 1/16 mile Tampa Bay Derby (Grade 2) at Tampa Bay Downs on March 10. In his next race, he finished second in the 1 1/8 mile Arkansas Derby  (Grade 1) at Oaklawn Park on April 14.



He was ninth in qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby.  But trainer Rodolphe Brisset held the son of Distorted Humor out of that race to give him an extra two weeks between races.
  
Here is the Preakness field by post positions (program numbers), with jockeys, trainers and morning line odds.
1. Quip  -- Rodolphe Brisset, Florent Geroux 12-1

2. Lone Sailor--Tom Amoss, Irad Oriz Jr., 15-1

3.Sporting Chance--D. Wayne Lukas, Luis Contreras, 30-1

4. Diamond King--John Servis,Javier Castellano, 30-1

5. Good Magic--Chad Brown, Jose Ortiz, 3-1

6.Tenfold--Steve Asmussen, Ricardo Santana Jr,

7.Justify --Bob Baffert, Mike Smith, 1-2

8. Bravazo--D. Wayne Lukas, Luis Saez, 20-1
--Jim Freer