BALTIMORE – Exaggerator, ridden by Kent Desormeaux, won the Preakness Stakes, denying Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist a chance to win horse racing’s Triple Crown.
A steady rain pelted Pimilco Race Course late Saturday afternoon, so the Preakness was run on a messy track for a second straight year.
In spite of the rain, officials estimated the crowd to be 134,000 — a new Preakness record.
Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist was the 3-5 betting favorite less than one hour before the race was slated to begin.
The condition of the track was listed as muddy for the Preakness, the 13th race of the day.
In 2015, American Pharoah won the second jewel of the Triple Crown in a driving storm.
On the undercard Saturday, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert won a second 3-year-old stakes when American Freedom earned a gutty victory in the $100,000 Sir Barton. Baffert also won $100,000 Chick Lang Stakes.
Takeover Target closed furiously to beat Ring Weekend by a neck in the $250,000 Dixie Stakes, the richest event on the Preakness undercard.
