For the first time in its history, the Preakness Stakes will be held on a Sunday, moving to the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend starting next year. The decision, announced by Maryland Governor Wes Moore and the Maryland Jockey Club, seeks to revitalize the second jewel of horse racing's Triple Crown.
This shift is a direct response to a declining number of horses participating in the Preakness just two weeks after the Kentucky Derby. In 2025, no horses competed in both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes. Over the past five years, only 13 out of 95 horses that ran in the Kentucky Derby also competed in the Preakness.
Maryland Jockey Club CEO Bill Knauf expressed optimism about the change, stating that the additional week between the two races "opens the Preakness to potential participants who use modern training methods." This adjustment is intended to boost enthusiasm for the event, which has seen diminished interest due to the smaller fields of horses.
Despite the change, a potential scheduling conflict looms for 2027, when the Belmont Stakes is set to occur only 13 days after the Preakness Stakes. The Preakness Stakes is scheduled to return to the partially reopened Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore in 2027, after being held at Laurel Park in 2026.