Preakness Stakes 2016 Odds: Nyquist Enters As Heavy Favorite On Betting Line
Nyquist can take a major step towards capturing this year’s Triple Crown with a win in the 141st Preakness Stakes on Saturday, which he enters as a heavy -175 betting favorite at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Jockey Mario Gutierrez rode Nyquist to a victory in the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago, picking up the win by 1 1/4 lengths. With the win, Nyquist remains undefeated in eight career races, and he has emerged as a +180 bet to capture this year’s Triple Crown heading into Saturday’s running of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.
Nyquist was a strong +225 favorite at Churchill Downs, rocketing up the odds ahead of the Derby following an impressive win at the Florida Derby, trouncing earlier favorite Mohaymen. The colt will now face a pair of challengers that also ran in the Kentucky Derby, including Exaggerator, who finished second while sporting +625 odds.
Exaggerator had a spectacular run in his most recent win, exploding down the stretch after lagging by 10 lengths to take the Santa Anita Derby by six lengths on a very sloppy track. With rain in the forecast for Saturday at Pimlico, Exaggerator looks to be the strongest bet to spoil Nyquist’s Triple Crown quest, starting from Post 5 with +375 odds at the sportsbooks.
After finishing ninth in the Kentucky Derby, Lani starts alongside Exaggerator at Post 6, but trails heavily on the Preakness Stakes odds as a +4000 longshot. The Derby marked Lani’s North American debut, following six career races in Hong Kong, Japan, and Dubai, that featured a win in the UAE Derby in March.
Stradivari will also be on the track at Pimlico on Saturday following a month-long break, spurring considerable interest as he starts on the outside at Post 11 with +800 odds. The Todd Pletcher-owned colt impressed with a win in an allowance race at Keeneland last time out, marking his second straight win while covering 1 1/8 miles in his longest race to date.
Collected starts at Post 7 with +1600 odds, and will be looking to make trainer Bob Baffert a seven-time winner at the Preakness Stakes. Cherry Wine sits on the rail at +2500, ahead of Uncle Lino and Awesome Speed, who each are pegged at +3300, while Lani is joined at the bottom of the odds by Fellowship, Abiding Star and Laoban as +4000 longshots.
Thumbnail photo via Geoff Burke/USA TODAY Sports Images
