Early Voting holds off Epicenter to win the Preakness Stakes
BALTIMORE » Early Voting held off hard-charging favorite 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 ¼ lengths ahead of Epicenter, who finished second like he did in the Derby.
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, who went off at 5-1, 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. He had never finished higher than fourth in four previous mounts in the race.
Early Voting finished first in a field of nine horses, which included filly Secret Oath and three who came back after running in the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago. Early Voting, a son of Gun Runner, won for the third time in four career races to take the $900,000 winner’s share of the $1.65 million purse.
“He got the time off,” assistant trainer Baldo Hernandez said this week. “He’s in good shape.”
He was in good enough shape to handle some adverse weather conditions. The 147th edition of the Preakness took place in near-record heat with the temperature soaring into the 90s by the time the
horses entered the gate.
Soccer
starting
MBAPPE SIGNS NEW PSG DEAL » Kylian Mbappé celebrated with fans at Parc des Princes then scored a hat trick after signing a new three-year contract with Paris Saint-Germain and turning down the chance again to join Real Madrid.
Before PSG beat Metz 5-0 in its final home game, France’s World Cup-winning star stood on a platform near the center circle to address fans.
“I’m very happy to continue this adventure, to stay in France, in Paris, my city. I always said Paris was my home,” Mbappe said. “I hope I will continue doing what I love the most, which is to carry on playing football and winning trophies.”
Mbappe then held up a PSG jersey with 2025 written on it as he stood alongside president Nasser AlKhelaifi, who had just announced the new deal.
MLB
ORIOLES CALL UP TOP PROSPECT » The Baltimore Orioles called top prospect Adley Rutschman up to the majors, paving the way for the 24-year-old catcher to make his big league debut.
“I’d say about as excited as I can be right now,” Rutschman said. “This is probably the coolest thing, coolest moment, that I’ve had so far. I’m really excited for it.”
The switch-hitting Rutschman was the No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft and is ranked as baseball’s No. 1 prospect by MLB Pipeline. The Orioles selected his contract from TripleA Norfolk and designated catcher Anthony Bemboom for assignment.
Rutschman is set to wear No. 35, the same number Hall of Famer Mike Mussina wore when he pitched for the Orioles.
Motor sports
JOHNSON COMFORTABLE AT INDY » Jimmie Johnson felt
comfortable from his very first laps of Indianapolis 500 preparation.
The seven-time NASCAR champion knows his way around The Brickyard — he won at Indianapolis Motor Speedway four times in a stock car — so not even a brush with the wall in an Indy car could rattle him.
The 46-year-old advanced into Sunday’s shootout for the pole with some of the fastest laps ever turned at Indy. His single-lap speed of 233.961 mph in morning practice was the 14th fastest lap ever turned at the track. Hours later, he posted a four-lap qualifying average of 232.398 mph to lock himself into his first Indy 500.
Johnson was the sixth fastest qualifier and on Sunday has a shot at winning the Indy 500 pole. The fastest 12 in the 33 car field have two Sunday shootouts and the “Fast Six” will set the first two rows for the May 29 race.