BALTIMORE (AP) — Early Voting won the Preakness Stakes, holding off a late challenge from fast-closing favorite Epicenter, who was the runner-up in a second consecutive Triple Crown race.
Early Voting's win validated the decision to skip the Kentucky Derby and aim for the middle jewel of the Triple Crown. The Preakness went off without Rich Strike, who passed favorite Epicenter to win the Derby at 80-1.
This time it was Epicenter that was trying to make up ground at the end, but Early Voting was well-rested six weeks after his most recent race. He won by 1 1/4 lengths.
Early Voting gave trainer Chad Brown his second Preakness victory. He’s also owned by Klaravich Stables, which won the race in 2017 with Cloud Computing. Jockey Jose Ortiz won the Preakness for the first time.
