NAPOLEON SOLO WINS THE PREAKNESS

By Graham Potter | Sunday, May 17, 2026

The grey Napoleon Solo claimed the one hundred and fifty first running of Preakness Stakes … the second leg of the Triple Crown … outgunning Iron Honor in the home stretch to score under a hard ride from Paco Lopez.

The fourteen-strong field was the largest since the same number contested the 2011 edition of the race, but it did not include the Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo, with trainer Cherie DeVaux electing to bypass the Preakness with her historic Derby winner … DeVaux is the first female trainer to train a Kentucky Derby winner … and go straight to the Belmont Stakes, thus taking the possibility of a Triple Crown winner in 2026 off the table.

The open nature of the race was reflected in the betting where Taj Mahal topped the boards at 9-2 … the longest priced favourite since the race was changed to its current distance, all the way back in 1925.

Taj Mahal, who earned favouritism by having an unbeaten record coming into the race … all at Laurel Park, the venue for The Preakness … took up the early running in confident fashion, but the Brittany Russell trained runner had no answer to the threat of Napolean Solo, who had tracked Tah Mahal throughout, when seriously challenged as the field approached the home turn and the latter surged into the lead … but he still has a race to win as Iron Honor, who came with him, was clearly not going to go away quietly.

In fact, Iron Honor was almost alongside Napoleon Solo on straightening.

Almost.

With both runners and riders giving their all, Napoleon Solo gallantly clung onto aa narrow advantage in the first half of the straight, ultimately grinding Iron Honor into submission and forcing his rival to have to settle for second place when Iron Honor could offer no more over the concluding stages.

Napoleon Solo was a first Triple Crown race winner for trainer Chad Summers.