The road to the Triple Crown may already be closed for every horse in this year’s crop, but jockey Jose Ortiz still has a remarkable sweep within reach as attention turns to Saturday’s 151st Preakness Stakes (G1) at Laurel Park.
Preakness Stakes 2026 contenders
Fresh from landing his first Kentucky Derby (G1) aboard Golden Tempo on May 2, Ortiz now reunites with Steve Asmussen-trained Chip Honcho in the second leg of the Triple Crown series. With Golden Tempo waiting for the Belmont Stakes (G1) at Saratoga next month, Ortiz has an opportunity to join one of the rarest clubs in American racing history by winning the Derby and Preakness on different horses in the same season.
Only two jockeys have previously achieved the feat. Calvin Borel famously won the 2009 Kentucky Derby on Mine That Bird before partnering Rachel Alexandra to Preakness glory, while Willie Simms accomplished it as far back as 1898 aboard Plaudit and Sly Fox.
“Trying to win the Triple Crown on different horses – why not?” Ortiz said at Churchill Downs. “I’m going for it. Hopefully I can win it.”
Ortiz already owns victories in two Triple Crown races, having captured the 2017 Belmont Stakes with Tapwrit and the 2022 Preakness aboard Early Voting. His confidence in Chip Honcho appears genuine after the colt’s productive winter campaign at Fair Grounds.
The colt broke his maiden under Ortiz at Churchill Downs last autumn before going on to win the Gun Runner Stakes. He later finished second to the highly regarded Paladin in the Risen Star Stakes (G2), producing what many observers regarded as his strongest effort to date.
“I think Chip Honcho has a very good chance to win the Preakness,” Ortiz said. “He’s a nice horse. He had a very good winter at the Fair Grounds, other than the last race. But he’s a really nice horse and has a really good shot.”
This year’s Preakness Stakes, temporarily relocated to Laurel Park while Pimlico Race Course undergoes redevelopment, has assembled a deep and varied field of 14 runners featuring established graded performers, emerging local talent and several Kentucky Derby graduates.
Among the leading Preakness Stakes 2026 contenders is Iron Honor, the 9-2 morning-line favourite trained by Chad Brown. The son of Nyquist arrived at Laurel on Tuesday and completed his first local gallop Wednesday morning under exercise rider Kelvin Perez.
Brown’s assistant Jose Hernandez said the colt had settled in smoothly after shipping from New York.
“He is healthy and happy,” Hernandez said. “He looked good on the track today. So far, everything is in good shape.”
Iron Honor won the Gotham Stakes (G3) earlier this season before a troubled seventh-place finish in the Wood Memorial (G2). He is set to be ridden by Flavien Prat for the first time and will race without blinkers.
Locally based trainer Brittany Russell will saddle one of the meeting’s most intriguing runners in unbeaten stakes winner Taj Mahal. The improving colt earned his place in the Preakness with a commanding victory in the Federico Tesio Stakes at Laurel last month.
Russell admitted the son of Nyquist took time to develop as a juvenile.
“He didn’t show us a whole lot right away, but we took our time and he just started to come around,” she said.
Taj Mahal has improved rapidly through the spring, progressing from a maiden winner into a serious Classic contender. His dominant Tesio success, achieved after overcoming a wide draw and dictating throughout, gave connections confidence to tackle the Triple Crown stage.
“He’s tough and gritty,” Russell said. “He wanted to do it.”
Elsewhere in the field, Incredibolt arrives after a respectable sixth-place finish in the Kentucky Derby, while Ocelli returns following a career-best third at Churchill Downs at odds of 70-1. Trainer Whit Beckman reported Ocelli had trained enthusiastically since arriving at Laurel.
“Looks fantastic,” Beckman said. “He trains with the same enthusiasm.”
Trainer Danny Gargan also expressed satisfaction with Talkin after the colt’s first exercise over the Laurel surface Wednesday morning. Gargan noted the Good Magic colt appeared relaxed despite the busy atmosphere surrounding the Preakness barn area.
“He’s handling it really well,” Gargan said. “He ate up good last night. That’s always important.”
The depth of the field extends beyond the headline names. Napoleon Solo, Pretty Boy Miah, Great White, Crupper and The Hell We Did all enter with ambitions of upsetting the established order, while veteran trainer Dallas Stewart once again attempts to land a major Triple Crown shock with outsider Corona de Oro.
Stewart has built a reputation for producing long-priced runners that outrun expectations in America’s biggest races, including Macho Again, Tale of Verve and Golden Soul.
“You’re not going to win them if you don’t keep trying,” Stewart said.
Great White, meanwhile, will attempt to become the first gelding since Funny Cide in 2003 to win the Preakness Stakes. Trainer John Ennis believes the imposing grey has more ability than his Blue Grass Stakes performance suggested.
“Without being overconfident, I’m not really scared of anyone,” Ennis said.
As preparations continued at Laurel Park on Wednesday morning, the atmosphere around the Preakness barn area steadily intensified. Horses trained, cooled out and settled into their temporary surroundings while connections balanced confidence with caution ahead of one of American racing’s great contests.
For Ortiz, however, Saturday presents something beyond another major-race opportunity. Victory aboard Chip Honcho would place him alongside two historic names and keep alive an unusual personal Triple Crown pursuit stretching across three different horses and three different Classics.
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