Epicenter put together a valiant effort at the Kentucky Derby before giving way to upset winner Rich Strike down the stretch. He will try to bounce back at the 2022 Preakness Stakes on Saturday. The Preakness Stakes 2022 will be the same length as the Louisiana Derby, which Epicenter won by 2 1/2 lengths. Does he have enough gas in the tank to be one of your top Preakness 2022 Stakes picks? Epicenter is the 6-5 favorite in the 2022 Preakness Stakes odds, while Early Voting is 7-2 and Secret Oath is 9-2. Which 2022 Preakness Stakes contenders should you back? Post time for the Preakness 2022 is 7:01 p.m. ET. With so much to consider while making your 2022 Preakness Stakes picks, a little expert help can go a long way.
The Preakness Stakes is now limited to 14 horses, although there will only be nine this year. However, the 1918 edition featured 26 entrants, leading to two separate races that year. War Cloud came away with the win in one division, while Jack Hare Jr. picked up the victory in the other. The most recent winner of the Preakness Stakes was Rombauer, who ran it in 1:53.62 last year. It was the second-fastest time since 2007, with 2020 champion Swiss Skydiver barely beating him out with a time of 1:53.28. Swiss Skydiver became the sixth filly to ever win the race and just the second since 1924.
Given all the history, there’s a method to picking which horses to focus on for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets in a Preakness Stakes like this, and SportsLine expert Jody Demling knows what it is. He can help you make the best 2022 Preakness Stakes picks possible.
A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling has been on-point with his horse racing bets. In fact, this is the same handicapper who has called the Preakness winner nine times in the last 17 years. In the 2020 Preakness Stakes, Demling nailed the Swiss Skydiver-Authentic exacta.
He hit the exacta in the Wood Memorial in April. Last year, he hit the exacta, trifecta and superfecta in the Belmont Stakes. He’s also hit the Derby-Oaks double at Churchill Downs 10 times in the last 14 years, including this year’s massive upset with Rich Strike. That means he held a ticket with the winners of both the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby all but four times in his last 14 tries.
In addition, at one point in 2020, he picked the winners of six straight races: the Saudi Cup, Gotham Stakes, Rebel Stakes, Louisiana Derby, Florida Derby and Belmont Stakes. Anyone who has followed him on these races is way up. Now, he’s sharing all of his 2022 Preakness Stakes bets here.
Top 2022 Preakness Stakes expert picks
Here’s a refresher on these types of bets from SportsLine’s Jody Demling:
Preakness Stakes Exacta: Pick the first- and second-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 exacta returned $49.30 at the 2021 Preakness Stakes with Rombauer and Midnight Bourbon.
Preakness Stakes Trifecta: Pick the first-, second- and third-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 trifecta returned $162.70 at the 2021 Preakness Stakes with Rombauer, Midnight Bourbon and Medina Spirit.
Preakness Stakes Superfecta: Pick the first-, second-, third- and fourth-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 superfecta returned a colossal $1,025.50 at the 2021 Preakness Stakes with Rombauer, Midnight Bourbon, Medina Spirit and Keepmeinmind.
While Demling has no quibbles with the favorite status of Epicenter (6-5) and Early Voting (7-2), he plans to hold tickets with Secret Oath (9-2) as well as four double-digit underdogs who could really spice up the payouts. You can see his picks here.
How to make 2022 Preakness Stakes bets
Demling has specific recommendations for exacta, trifecta and superfecta wagers so you can cover all your bases at the Preakness Stakes 2022. He’s sharing them over at SportsLine.
So which horses do you take? And in what combinations? Visit SportsLine to get Demling’s picks for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets for the 2022 Preakness Stakes.
