The 2023 Preakness Stakes, a major event in U.S. sports betting, took in nearly $102 million in wagers, down approximately two million from the previous year but online betting appears to be critical to the industry as a whole.
Off to the Races
The Preakness Stakes, held at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland is host to the second leg of the Triple Crown and it also sets the stage for the final leg, the Belmont Stakes, as to whether a Triple Crown winner is in play.
Unfortunately for horse racing fans, there will be no Triple Crown winner this year as the Kentucky Derby winner, Mage, came up short of National Treasure and Blazing Sevens in the Preakness. But there was no dearth of interest in the race as the handle was a reported $101.7 million which was narrowly down from the $104 million wagered last year on the event.
The order of finish was as follows:
- National Treasure – $7.80 to win, $4.00 to place, $2.60 to show.
- Blazing Sevens – $5.00 to place, $2.80 to show.
- Mage -$2.40 to show.
- Red Route One
- Chase the Chaos
- Perform
- CoffeewittChris
Scratched: First Mission.
Preakness Attendance Plummets
Although the betting handle was above the pre-Covid five-year average from 2015-2019 of $94 million, the biggest concern for event organizers is the precipitous drop in attendance. During this year’s two-day event which is Friday’s Black-Eyed Susan Day and Saturday’s Preakness card, there were 65,000 in attendance which was slightly higher than last year.
However, that figure was dwarfed when compared to the approximately 182,000 who attended the 2019 Preakness, a staggering 74% drop. Although the operator of Pimlico Race Course, 1/ST, does not break down how many of the 65,000 people attended Friday and Saturday’s events individually, they did have this to say.
“This year’s reimagined festivities designed to reduce the event footprint for a fresh, post-pandemic guest experience welcomed 60,000+ who wagered over $130 million (combined) on one of the hottest May days on record.”
With attendance dropping so dramatically only a few years ago, but the handle still substantially above where it was at its zenith, the only logical explanation is the explosion of online wagering that has sustained the event and the industry.
Another Fatality
Several thoroughbreds were humanely euthanized heading into the Kentucky Derby weekend at Churchill Downs while a few others just collapsed and died without any human intervention.
It is an issue that has haunted the industry since its inception, but the rash of world-class racehorses sustaining fatal injuries all at the same track and within a week or two of each other had tongues wagging and fingers pointing.
Unfortunately, the casualties did not elude Pimlico as a 3-year-old colt by the name of Havnameltdown, came up lame during Saturday’s sixth race. Track veterinarians arrived on the scene within moments of the race finishing and had to euthanize the young horse on the track itself, surrounded only by a thin black curtain to prevent a public spectacle.
A press release from 1/ST detailed the fatality as follows “During the Chick Lang Stakes at Pimlico, the number one horse, Havnameltdown, sustained an injury and immediately received on-track medical attention from an expert team of veterinarians, led by Dr. Dionne Benson.
“During the subsequent evaluation, she [the lead veterinarian] observed a non-operable left fore fetlock injury. Due to the severity and prognosis of the injury, Dr. Benson and her counterparts made the difficult decision to humanely euthanize Havnameltdown.”
Calculators
