May 22, 2022 - 03:01
By cbc.ca

Early Voting holds off Epicenter to win Preakness Stakes

Early Voting held off hard-charging favourite Epicenter to win the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, validating the decision to skip the Kentucky Derby and aim for the second leg of the Triple Crown.

Early Voting stalked behind the leaders for much of the race before moving into the lead around the final turn. He finished 1 1/4 lengths ahead of Epicenter, who was second just like in the Derby.

"I was never worried," Early Voting trainer Chad Brown said. "Once we had a good target, I actually preferred that. We were fine to go to the lead, but I thought down the back side it was going to take a good horse to beat us. And a good horse did run up on us near the wire and it was about the only one that could run with us."

The Preakness was run without Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike after his owner prioritized extra rest over the chance at winning the Triple Crown. Early Voting could have run in the Derby, but Brown, and owner Seth Klarman of Klaravich Stables, opted for some extra rest, too.

"That's very hard to get an owner to pass on the Derby, and they did the right choice," said jockey Jose Ortiz, who won the Preakness for the first time. "The horse, I don't think he was seasoned enough to run in a 20-horse field and they proved that they were right today."

An emotional win for <a href="https://twitter.com/jose93_ortiz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@jose93_ortiz</a> as he claims his first <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Preakness?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Preakness</a> victory aboard <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EarlyVoting?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EarlyVoting</a> for trainer <a href="https://twitter.com/TheRealChadCBr1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheRealChadCBr1</a>. <a