The Preakness Stakes

The Preakness Stakes is an American Grade I stakes race 1-3/16 mile thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses, held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds; fillies 121 lbs.
The Preakness Stakes has been termed "The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans" because a horseshoe of black-eyed susans, the state flower of Maryland, is traditionally placed around the winner's neck. The Preakness is the second leg in American thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown and almost always attracts the Kentucky Derby winner, some of the other horses that ran in the Derby, and often a few horses that did not start in the Derby. The Preakness is 1 3/16 miles or about 9 furlongs, compared to the Kentucky Derby (10 furlongs) and the Belmont (12). It is followed by the third leg, the Belmont Stakes.