National Treasure took home the 148th Preakness Stakes in Baltimore on Saturday.
National Treasure and Blazing Sevens were neck-and-neck down the stretch, but the Bob Baffert-trained horse held on for the victory in 1:55.12 — it was Baffert’s 17th Triple Crown win, and his eighth victory at the Preakness.
In Mage’s attempt to keep his Triple Crown bid alive, he again tried to come from the outside, just like his Kentucky Derby victory, but he couldn’t break ahead and finished in third.
Much like the Derby Day, though, Preakness Day was not all sunshine and rainbows, and in his return from a two-year suspension from the sport, Baffert again found himself in trouble.
The horse’s jockey, Luis Saez, flew off the horse and was also hospitalized.
Baffert recently completed a two-year suspension stemming from a positive drug test on Medina Spirit following the 2021 Kentucky Derby. The horse crossed the finish line first in that race, but was disqualified due to the test – the thoroughbred died that December.
Bob Baffert trained Havnameltdown is taken off the track after being euthanized during the sixth race ahead of the 148th Running of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course on May 20, 2023 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)
PETA, who previously called Churchill Downs a “killing field,” sounded off on horse racing and Baffert himself.