Preakness Preview Day Handicapping Challenge prizes include NHC, BCBC Seats, Cash, Preakness Tickets
Federico Tesio and Weber City Miss “Win Today, See You in May” Qualifiers
LAUREL, MD – Saturday, April 19 is “Preakness Preview Day” at Laurel Park, featuring a 12-race program with full fields, the “Preakness Preview Day Handicapping Challenge,” five stakes worth $600,000 in purses, and “Win Today, See You in May” qualifiers.
“Preakness Preview Day” attracted 120 entrants, ensuring solid wagering opportunities for handicappers and racing fans. There will be two “Value Pick 5” wagers on the program featuring a 50-cent minimum bet and a low 12% takeout rate. Both “Value Pick 5” bets, the first five races on the card and the last five on the program, offer carryover potential. The first time is 12:10 pm ET.
The “Preakness Preview Day Handicapping Challenge” is a handicapping contest with a $500 buy-in, half of which goes to a live money bankroll.
Players may participate at Laurel Park with on-site registration beginning at 11 am ET on Saturday or online via Xpressbet, TVG, or 4NJBets. The prize pool includes two seats to the NTRA National Horseplayers Championship, one to the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, two tickets to the 2025 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on Saturday, May 17, and cash prizes.
Click here for sign-up information and complete terms and conditions.
The five stakes are highlighted by two “Win Today, See You in May” qualifiers. Any Triple Crown-nominated runner that wins the $150,000 Federico Tesio for 3-year-olds at 1 1/8 miles will automatically earn a spot in the starting gate for the Grade 1, $2,000,000 Preakness, the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown.
The winner of the $150,000 Weber City Miss for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles receives an automatic berth into the Grade 2, $300,000 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico on Preakness Eve.
Maryland’s first three turf stakes of the year are part of “Preakness Preview Day” festivities. The $100,000 Henry Clark is for 3-year-olds and upward at one mile, while the $100,000 King T. Leatherbury is for 3-year-olds and upward traveling 5 ½ furlongs. The $100,000 Dahlia is for fillies and mares at one mile.
*Pay Billy, Surfside Moon lead competitive Federico Tesio field
Private Terms winner Pay Billy and Withers Stakes runner-up Surfside Moon lead a competitive edition of the Federico Tesio.
Trained by Michael Gorham for RKTN Racing, Pay Billy won the Private Terms by 3 ½ lengths on March 22. That race came on the heels of a close runner-up finish in his stakes debut, Laurel’s Miracle Wood on February 22.
“He’s going as good into this race as he did his last race,” Gorham said Tuesday. “I’m expecting a big [effort].”
Gorham noted that Pay Billy breaks from post nine in the ten-horse Federico Tesio.
“He’s got an outside post, so [jockey Raul Mena] will have to use him a bit and try to tuck in,” Gorham mentioned. “It should separate enough where he can get in and save some ground, and he definitely doesn’t need to be on the lead.”
Manor Stable and Mair Lee Stables’ Surfside Moon earned a field-best 90 Beyer Speed Figure when placing second, 2 ¼ lengths behind Captain Cook in Aqueduct’s Withers on February 1.
“Our horse came out of that race with a real bad cold and infection,” said trainer Chuck Lawrence. “We had to give him three weeks off. Probably not a bad thing to get off the so-called Derby trail and make it a little easier for the horse.”
Lawrence always believed that the Malibu Moon colt would appreciate longer distances.
“We always liked him from the moment we picked him out at the sale to when we broke him,” Lawrence said. “He did everything right. As a 2-year-old, he ran well, but we were really anticipating and looking forward to two turns with him. Everything about his breeding and his demeanor said that he’d really excel when we went two turns.”
Mens Grille Racing’s Studlydoright, recently named Maryland’s champion 2-year-old male of 2024, is the highest money-earner in the Tesio, having accrued $307,205 in purse money for trainer John Robb.
The multiple stakes-winning Nyquist colt recently finished fifth in Colonial’s Virginia Derby on March 15. He has competed in only stakes races since winning his debut racing 4 ½ furlongs at Laurel Park on May 5.
Sacred Thunder, the winner of Laurel’s James F. Lewis III on November 9, has hit the board in his last four races, all stakes in Maryland, and some with troubled trips. Owned by John Hazard, Sacred Thunder finished behind Pay Billy when third in the Miracle Wood and second in the Private Terms.
“He always shows up,” said trainer Gary Capuano. “He’s training good, he looks good. The [distance] won’t hurt him. He doesn’t have that quick turn of foot. He grinds and grinds. If he gets a good trip and he’s in contention, he’ll keep coming.
Kentucky Outlaw tries stakes company for the first time after capturing his first two starts by a combined 13 ¼ lengths at Parx. He wired a first-level allowance field on March 26 when trying two turns for the first time.
Ten days later, Kentucky Outlaw breezed a bullet half-mile in 47 seconds.
“I could only walk him for two days,” said owner-trainer Felissa Dunn. “The third day, we had to take him to the track. He was just wild.”
Dunn admits that Kentucky Outlaw will face his toughest test on Saturday but believes the Outwork colt will “love” the nine-furlong distance. His running style is straightforward.
“I don’t think we can hold him,” Dunn said, noting that Kentucky Outlaw would likely go directly to the lead.
Stakes-placed performers Right Wing Runner and Just a Fair Shake entered, as did Arcadian, Bold Diversion, and Happily Delusional.
*Moon Cache and Safe Trust rematch in Weber City Miss
Moon Cache and Safe Trust, the one-two finishers in Laurel’s Beyond the Wire on March 22, square off again in the Weber City Miss.
Moon Cache, fresh off being claimed for $40,000 by Gorham and owner Original 6 Stable, was disqualified and placed second in the Beyond the Wire for causing interference right at the finish. She drew the outside post in the seven-horse Weber City Miss.
“She’s got some speed, and I think she’ll be forwardly placed,” said Gorham.
After being awarded the Beyond the Wire trophy, Barak Farm’s Safe Trust raced last week in a first-level allowance at six furlongs. Last of six after a half-mile, the Mosler filly rallied stoutly to score by three lengths.
“The filly was training well, and she was ready to go,” said trainer Jose Corrales. “I did not expect she was going to kick that good after coming out of the mile [race]. I was pointing a little bit to this race. We were going to work her anyway. If the horse came back okay, then we would run in the [Weber City Miss].”
Corrales believes Safe Trust’s improvement is due to added maturity.
“She was one of the craziest horses that you think are never going to make it to the races,” Corrales said. “As time goes by, she’s getting better and better. She tries every time.”
Trainer Brittany Russell entered two impressive fillies.
Reply, a $450,000 yearling by Curlin out of multiple stakes-winner Special Relativity, graduated at first asking racing a one-turn mile at Colonial on March 14 for Repole Stables.
Golden Lion Stable’s Complexity Jane rallied from last to grab her career debut at six furlongs on February 1. Then, she was awarded first purse money after finishing second in a first-level allowance going a mile on March 2.
Albert Lupcho’s Hollywood Beauty, the winner of Parx’s Future Stars Fillies on December 30, looks to rebound after placing third in Aqueduct’s Ruthless on February 1 and fourth as the odds-on favorite in Parx’s Main Line on March 4. Marya Montoya trains the Honor A. P. filly.
Richard Harris’s Late Nite Call won her maiden over this course and distance on February 21.
“I was surprised she lacked so much speed when we first ran her,” trainer Niall Saville said. “She was very immature mentally. There’s no off switch for her. When we started her off last year, you could have very easily got her wound up and ran her 5 ½ on the grass at Colonial. I stopped myself from doing it because I thought [long on dirt] was the way forward.”
Two-time winner Ade also entered.
*Graded winners Neat and Fulmineo clash in the Henry S. Clark
A graded stakes winner at Keeneland, Aqueduct, and Saratoga last year, Neat returns to Maryland for the Henry S. Clark.
The 4-year-old Constitution colt, owned by Red White and Blue Racing and trained by Rob Atras, finished sixth of seven in his 2025 debut, the Grade 1 Frank E. Kilroe at Santa Anita on March 1.
“It was a really tough race,” Atras said. “I don’t like to make any excuses, but the turf was a little bit on the soft side for California. I don’t know if that had anything to do with the result, but one of the reasons we went out there was the firm turf.”
Conversely, Starlight Racing and Mark Grier’s Fulmineo wouldn’t mind any give in the turf course. Trained by Arnaud Delacour, Fulmineo won two stakes last year, and both came over soft going. The 4-year-old Bolt d’Oro colt hasn’t raced since finishing seventh in the Grade 3 Virginia Derby on September 7.
“We thought he needed a break,” Delacour said. “His last two races were a little flat. We’ve been aiming for this race all winter because it’s a logical spot. He hasn’t missed a beat. His breeze pattern is every week. I’m happy with his condition, for sure. I’m hoping we have a bit of cut in the ground.”
Stonelea Stable and Bonnie Rye Stable’s Desvio took the Kent Stakes at 1 3/8 miles last summer at Delaware, then finished third in the Virginia Derby. He finished sixth in his final start of 2024, the Grade 3 Hill Prince at Aqueduct on November 9.
“We rode him for a week after that to let him down, then kicked him out to a farm nearby,” said trainer Madison Meyers. “He did great [over the winter]. He’s not always the easiest to deal with, but he’s just a bigger, stronger horse now. It’s a big cutback going back to a mile, but it’s kind of a good jumping-off place, and I feel he’ll probably be a little bit sharp off the layoff.”
Card Trick, Signator, Degree of Risk, and Hammer boast sharp recent form. Ocean City should show speed from the inside draw. Grade 3-placed Crabs N Beer and stretchout sprinter Mischievous Angel complete the field.
*Determined Kingdom makes seasonal debut in King T. Leatherbury
Determined Kingdom, the winner of the last three editions of Colonial’s restricted Punch Line Stakes, makes his 6-year-old debut in the King T. Leatherbury.
A gelded son of Animal Kingdom, Determined Kingdom earned a career-best 99 Beyer when winning a fourth-level allowance at Keeneland on October 25.
Determined Kingdom was purchased by owner Larry Johnson the following month for $190,000 at Keeneland. Johnson, a longtime leading breeder and owner in the Mid-Atlantic region, passed away earlier this year.
“[That Keeneland race] was the big reason [we bought him],” said new trainer Michael Trombetta. “Larry, at the time, was looking for a couple of quality horses to run at Colonial. That’s the ultimate goal. I gave him a little break. He wintered good.”
Trombetta also entered stakes-placed Maya Prince, who finished fifth in a high-level allowance here on November 7.
“This is a great place to get both of them started and get a run under them, and then we can move forward from there,” Trombetta said, mentioning that both of his charges are training very nicely.
The popular Witty won this race off the layoff last year and looks to repeat the pattern for trainer Elizabeth Merryman, who co-owns the Great Notion gelding with Qatar Racing and Marc Detampel.
“I think he really, really enjoyed his break,” Merryman said. “He had a little bit more break than last [year]. He’s a really special horse. They don’t make too many Wittys, and certainly not in my life. I appreciate him every day.”
Late-running Witty can sometimes be slow leaving the gate. “That’s just him,” Merryman said. “I don’t think I’m going to change that at this point. The main thing is if there’s a little give in the turf. That’s what he needs. He’s proven at this point that he really hates firm turf. He prefers dirt over firm turf.”
Speedy Fore Harp won the Laurel Dash here in 2023. Whenigettoheaven grabbed the restricted Ben’s Cat over the Laurel lawn last summer. Multiple stakes-winner Prince of Jericho makes his turf debut. They join Great Idea, El Divino Nino, Swill, Had to Have Him, Incinerator, Tudox Opportunity, and Where’s Ray in the starting gate.
*Millionaire Sparkle Blue heads Dahlia field
Trainer Graham Motion is rightfully proud of Sparkle Blue. After all, the Grade 2-winning mare notched the last two editions of Laurel’s Big Dreyfus and became a millionaire in 2024.
“She’s a very generous, straightforward filly. She makes my life very easy,” Motion said. “She’s just a real blue-collar, hard-knocking filly.”
Sparkle Blue last raced in Tampa Bay’s Grade 2 Hillsborough on March 8, finishing fifth of nine.
“I don’t know if I can make too many excuses for her,” Motion said. “I thought I had her pretty fit. It also came up a pretty competitive race. I think the first two are proper Grade 2, Grade 1 type fillies.”
Sparkle Blue breezed five-eighths in a bullet 1:01.60 over Fair Hill’s All Weather Training Track on April 13. That morning, she worked with Gimme a Nother, a Group 1 winner in South Africa. Gimme a Nother finished second in the Hillsborough.
Multiple stakes-winner Tufani appears to be rounding into form for her third start of the year after finishing a rallying second in the Tom Benson Memorial at Fair Grounds.
Fantastical and Nineteenamendment enter following allowance wins over All Weather surfaces at Turfway and Gulfstream, respectively.
Cut From Class made Sparkle Blue work hard when second, beaten a half-length in the 2024 Big Dreyfus.
“To run against that kind of competition and come so close, I was extremely proud of her,” trainer Caitlin Keil said.
The Blame mare makes her 2025 debut, and Keil mentioned that she “hopes Cut From Class is on the lead.”
“I’m hoping she’s fit enough,” Keil said. “She hasn’t had a start since November. I like the mile. Hopefully, it’ll hit her right between the eyes.”
Gourmet, Di’s Surprise, and Pure Majestic also entered. Skip Thru Da Fire runs Main Track Only.
