After the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness is one of the biggest races in the US racing calendar. The Preakness Stakes is a Grade I stakes race 1-3/16 mile (1.91 km) thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses, held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57 kg); fillies 121 lb (55 kg). The Preakness Stakes has been termed “The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans” because a blanket of Black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta), the state flower of Maryland, is traditionally placed around the winner’s neck.

This year’s Preakness Stakes 2009 taks place on Saturday May 16. For more info. see our Preakness Stakes page.