September 28, 2020 
Bob Baffert- trained Authentic drew post 9 and was installed as the 9-5 favorite for the 145th running of Saturday’s $1.5 million Preakness Stakes at Pimlico in Baltimore.
The Kentucky Derby victor will attempt to defeat 10 rivals to win two of this year’s COVID-19-jumbled Triple Crown races.
John Velazquez will pilot the favorite after posting a win with their first trip together in the Derby. “I learned a lot just by being on him a first time,” said the returning rider. Velazquez has never won a Preakness.
There can be no Triple Crown winner this year. Tiz the Law won the shortened Belmont Stakes June 20. The Barclay Tagg-trained colt will skip the Preakness for rest and target the Nov. 7 Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland, KY.
Included in the Preakness field will be Authentic stable-mate Thousand Words in post 5, scratched from the Derby when he reared and fell in the paddock minutes before the race. Baffert has called Thousand Words as “a baby Justify,” a reference to his 2018 Triple Crown winner.
Following the draw, Baffert spoke in a pre-recorded interview with the Maryland Jockey Club about the colt’s frisky pre-Derby behavior: “If you know of anyone who wants to help saddle him on Saturday…” he quipped with a laugh.
The field includes several other talented colts and one filly, Swiss Skydiver. The runaway winner of the Alabama Stakes at Saratoga Aug. 15 was runner-up to fellow Preakness entry Art Collector in the Blue Grass Stakes July 11 at Keeneland. The Ken McPeek trainee will take on the boys from post 4.
Finnick the Fierce, the one-eyed fan favorite and Preakness hopeful, will not be in the field. An extensive examination by Dr. Larry Bramlage at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital following his Kentucky Derby scratch revealed a mild strain of an upper suspensory ligament. The injury is not career-threatening. He is expected to return to training in October and may race before year’s end.
The complete post draw for the 11-horse field, riders and morning line odds are:
Normally the middle jewel in the Triple Crown, the 1 3/16-mile (9.5 furlongs) dirt race is last in this year’s altered Triple Crown schedule due to the pandemic. It will be run with no spectators and a limited media presence.
