2023 Preakness: Every winner from Saturday’s racing program at Pimlico

Here’s a recap of every race on Saturday’s program on 2023 Preakness Day at Pimlico Race Course.

For Friday’s results, click here. For live coverage of the day, click here.

Race 1

A steady, paced start quickly turned into a multi-length victory for Rock the Boat in the day’s first race with a winning time of 56.01 seconds.

The Maryland-bred stallion, jockeyed by Horacio Karamanos, trained by W. Robert Bailes and owned by WWCD, LLC, made his push around the final turn of the 5-furlong turf race for 3-year-olds and up. The win paid $6.00 on a $2.00 bet, $2.80 on a $2.00 bet to place and $2.60 on the same bet to show.

Tauber had the strongest jump out of the gate before surrendering an early lead.

Tapio and American Speed finished in a dead heat for second and third place, followed by Tauber and Monster Mason.

Old Friends Purse

Tate and Rustys Gfivefifty were neck-and-neck for a large portion of the day’s first 1 1/16-mile dirt race — a moot point once Be Better snuck up the outside lane on the final straightaway.

The 4-year-old horse, jockeyed by Jevian Toledo, trained by Brittany T. Russell and owned by Repole Stable, reached the wire first with a winning time of 1:42.94 through the fast and firm conditions.

Be Better paid $5.80, $3.00 and $2.40, leading the eight-horse field.

Iywaan placed second, followed by Tate, Code Runner then Rustys Gfivefifty.

Batoff Goldie

Composer’s Dream ran a meticulous race. He darted to the inside out of the gate, hung around the middle ground for a large portion of the 1 1/16-mile turf-laden race then made his move.

A bit of outside pressure in the final straightaway gave way to a late pass and an eventual winning time of 1:42.24. The colt was jockeyed by Irad Ortiz Jr., trained by Michael J. Maker, and is owned by Paradise Farms Corp., David Staudacher and Maxis Stable.

Composer’s Dream paid out $12.20, $6.00 and $4.20 at 5-1 odds. Toofareastiswest finished next in line. He was followed by Weyhill Road, who made a futile late push but came in third. Headline News finished fourth.

Langley Avenue showed the most promise for the extent of the race but fell out of contention late. He’s Got Swagger was the odds-on favorite but similarly did not live up to his namesake in the 11-horse field.

25th Sir Barton Stakes

Arabian Lion, a colt trained by the most recognizable name in the sport, Bob Baffert, handily won the first Stakes race of the day in a four-length gate-to-wire victory. The winning time was 1:41.13.

The $100,000 purse marks Baffert’s first win of the weekend. Arabian Lion was manned by Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez and is owned by Zedan Racing Stables, Inc. Baffert’s first horse entry, Faiza, placed third in Friday’s Black-Eyed Susan.

Baffert didn’t mince his words about the potential of Arabian Lion.

“I should have run him in the Preakness!” he said. “I think that race sort of helped him, and I wanted to give him one more time around two turns. He is such a beautiful horse. He is like a smaller version of Justify and I think he is just starting to wake up. ... The Belmont is a possibility with him.”

Tapit’s Conquest threatened on the final turn but ultimately finished in second. Denington, Sheriff Ronnie and Feeling Woozy rounded out the top five of the five-horse field.

Arabian Lion paid out $2.80, $2.20 and $2.10.

“I wanted to keep his mind on running because he got to the stretch and started drifting out,” Velazquez said. “Obviously, he has changed a lot from two starts back when I rode him (fourth in Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita) because when I rode him he was a bad fourth. ... He’s a different horse from two starts back.”

Race 5

Amani’s Image came within a half-second of the track record.

He crossed the finish line with a winning time of 1:40.56. Somelikeithotbrown narrowly holds the record, having finished the 1 1/16-mile turf race in 1.40.09 in 2021.

Amani’s Image paid out $12.80, $7.00 and $5.60. He is jockeyed by Velazquez, who earned his second win of the day, trained by H. Graham Motion and owned by Sumaya U.S. Stable.

The final stretch of the race was anyone’s to win. Downtown Katie came in second. Thegirlfromireland and Nicolar were right in the mix as well, placing third and fourth. Lifelovenlaughter finished fifth among the day’s largest pool of 13 horses.

48th Chick Lang Stakes

Baffert’s second horse of the day, Havnameltdown, was the prominent story out of the Chick Lang Stakes. The colt, jockeyed by Luis Saez, unseated his rider near the five-eighths marker of the 6-furlong race. The horse was euthanized after suffering a catastrophic injury to its left front ankle on the stretch turn. Saez was taken to a nearby hospital to be evaluated for a leg injury.

“We never had an issue with him,” Baffert said in a statement. “We are so careful with all these horses, and it still happens. It is something that is disheartening. I feel so bad for that horse, and I just hope that Luis [Saez] is OK. The way he was riding him; the horse was moving, he was going on with it. He looked like the winner ... it’s the worst feeling. And we grieve. We do grieve when these things happen. There is nothing worse than coming back and the stall is empty. He is a nice horse. He could not have been doing any better. It’s sickening. I am in shock.”

As heads craned toward the accident, Ryvit crossed the finish line first with a winning time of 1:09.33, earning the $200,000 purse. The winner paid out $12.80, $5.60 and $3.40. Ryvit was jockeyed by Keith Asmussen, is trained by Steven M. Asmussen and owned by L. William and Corinne Heiligbrodt.

Prince of Jericho placed second. Frosted Departure came in third in the seven-horse field.

72nd Gallorette Stakes

A close finish of four horses galvanized a gripping final stretch in the day’s seventh undercard race.

Whitebeam emerged from the middle of the pack, crossing with the winning time of 1:41.67. He was jockeyed by Irad Ortiz Jr., is trained by Chad C. Brown and owned by Juddmonte. The win paid out $3.60, $2.60 and $2.20.

“Beautiful trip,” Ortiz Jr. said in a statement. “She broke so good, broke on top actually. I let her go into the first turn to get position. I took a hold of her, and she came back to me right away. So, I just waited for the time to go, and she came on really well. She’s a nice one.”

Behind Whitebeam, in order, were Sopran Basilea, within 2 1/2 lengths; Bipartisanship, a neck behind him; Princess Theorem, a nose away; and Vergara, 1 1/4 lengths back for fifth place in the 1 1/16-mile turf race.

Whitebeam’s purse paid out $100,000 and marked Ortiz Jr.’s second win of the day.

122nd Dinner Party Stakes

It was a scramble in the final stretch. Four horses traded a slight edge.

Ultimately, it was Never Explain, whose final strides reached just beyond his competition to cross the finish line with a winning time of 1:46.14, a new track record (previous record was held by Mr O’Brien in 1:46.34 from 2004).

Never Explain paid $32.40, $10.20 and $4.80. He was jockeyed by Flavien Prat, is trained by Claude R. McGaughey III and owned by Courtlandt Farm.

The margins for the horses that followed were a 1/2 length to the second-place finisher, Hurricane Dream; a head to Emmanuel, then a neck and a neck separating Speaking Scout in fourth, and Atone in fifth among the seven-horse field galloping 1 1/8 miles on turf.

30th Skipat Stakes

Jockey Vincent Cheminaud gave more attention to his own stallion than the rest of the field in the 6-furlong Skipat Stakes dirt race. And it paid off.

Cheetara, who is trained by Ignacio Correas IV and owned by Stud Los Leones, won in 1:09.95. He hung around with the front of the pack, which was four deep midway through the turn. Then he pounced, chasing down his competition for a late lead.

“She doesn’t like the contact with other horses,” Cheminaud said. “That’s why I stay in the middle because I turn a little out. I like that because I don’t need to go inside with the contact. That’s why I stayed there. ... When I ride her inside, she stops every time. That’s why I did that, for her to be a little more relaxed.”

Cheetara beat Olivia Darling, I’m the Boss of Me, Princess Kokachin and Oxana. The victory paid out $36.00, a new high for the day, $13.80 and $6.60.

18th Jim McKay Turf Sprint

Beer Can Man engaged a bit of contact out of the gate, hung around near the front of the pack then made his final push to secure a nearly record-breaking win. His final time was 55.56.

The track record belongs to Firecrow, who ran the same 5-furlong turf race in 55.30 two years ago.

The victory paid out $9.00, $4.00 and $2.60. Beer Can Man was jockeyed by Flavien Prat — his second winning mount — is trained by Philip D’Amato and owned by Little Red Feather Racing, Madaket Stables LLC and Sterling Stables, LLC.

Beer Can Man’s margin of victory over second-place finisher Nothing Better was by merely a neck’s length.

“He was really sharp down the backside, jumped out well out of there, was traveling super,” Prat said in a statement. “When we got to the turn, he kind of dropped the bridle and I was a bit worried. But as soon as we got into the stretch he really leveled off and kept on running.”

Coppola finished third at 3 1/2 lengths away. He was 3/4 lengths away from Artemus Citylimits, who finished fourth.

36th Maryland Sprint Stakes

Straight No Chaser, in the final straightaway of a 6-furlong race, was deft of a competitive chaser, winning by 7 1/2 lengths.

Prevalence finished next in line. Then came the odds-on favorite, Nakatomi. Full Authority finished fourth, followed by Willy Boi.

The winning time was 1:08.27 for Straight No Chaser, who is jockeyed by John Velazquez, is trained by Dan Blacker and owned by MyRacehorse. The victory paid out $5.20, $3.80 and $2.80.

58th James W. Murphy Stakes

Nagirroc was the predicted favorite for good reason.

The colt, jockeyed by Flavien Prat, trained by H. Graham Motion and owned by Little Red Feather Racing, Madaket Stables LLC and Strauss, William, finished with a record time of 1:33.11, beating North East Bound’s 2000 time of 1:33.42.

Behind Nagirroc in the mile-long turf run was Funtastic Again, Circling the Drain, Kingfish Stevens and Wonderful Justice.

The winning payout for the last undercard race before the Preakness was $4.00, $2.60 and $2.20.

148th Preakness Stakes

While the Preakness results didn’t boast a win for Mage, which would have offered an opportunity for a new Triple Crown winner, the highly anticipated 1 3/16-mile dirt race was not absent excitement.

National Treasure and Blazing Sevens were the final two horses ahead of the pack, galloping stride for stride. National Treasure edged Blazing Sevens by a head length to win the 148th running with a winning time of 1:55.12.

The victor, jockeyed by John Velazquez, trained by Bob Baffert — now the all-time leader in Preakness wins — and owned by SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Robert E. Masterson, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Jay A Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital LLC, and Catherine Donovan, paid out $7.80, $4.00 and $2.60.

UAE President Cup

Diamond Gem AA, the favorite for the UAE President Cup, won the day’s final race.

The stallion was jockeyed by Angel Cruz, is trained by Jerenesto Torrez and owned by Betty J. and Joseph A. Gillis. The winning time was 1:56.66, paying out $4.40, $3.00 and $2.20.

RB Texas Hold Em, Quick Sand AA and Like Moulin Rouge followed in the 1 1/16-mile dirt race.