Preakness Stakes Odds: Imagination Avoiding Muth’s Fever Bug?
While the main event is inching closer, the field of Preakness Stakes odds has shrunk. That’s because Muth, first listed as the morning-line favorite, was scratched on Wednesday after spiking a fever the night before. Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert is left with one contestant in the Preakness Stakes, Imagination. Find out below whether the three-year-old colt is in jeopardy of missing the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown.
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imagination’s status for Preakness odds
Imagination (6-1) proved he was healthy at 8 a.m. ET on Thursday, galloping around Pimlico’s main track. Assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes noted the horse was in stellar condition. The track experienced rain the night before but held up well in the early morning.
“These things happen,” Barnes said. “It’s just unfortunate for it to happen. But we do all the precautionary measures we can take as far as isolating the horse. No contamination.”
Barnes and his team couldn’t explain why Muth, Imagination’s stablemate, became ill. However, the trek to Baltimore certainly didn’t help.
Operated by FedEx, horses are initially shipped on planes, presenting minimal shipping options. That was not true when Tex Sutton Equine Air Transportation was at the controls.
“Tex Sutton would normally fly right into Baltimore vs. FedEx, where we have to fly to Newark,” Barnes said. “Unfortunately, they land at a bad time. You land at 4:50 (p.m.), by the time you get out of there it’s 5, and you’re looking at a lot of traffic coming in through New York.”
Baffert’s team quickly learned of Muth’s sickness, anticipating the fever would subside in just a few days. The timeline could be enough for Muth to train for the Belmont Stakes, slated for June 8.
Conversely, Barnes stated that Imagination had no ill effects from the trip, meaning Baffert should have a shot at his ninth win at Pimlico.
In April, jockey Frankie Dettori rode Imagination to a second-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby (G1). He’s set to hop on his saddle again for the Preakness Stakes, his first time competing in the race. The complete list of Preakness morning-line odds is below.
| Post Position | Horse | Morning-Line Odds | Trainer | Jockey |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mugatu | 20-1 | Jeff Engler | Joe Bravo |
| 2. | Uncle Heavy | 20-1 | Butch Reid Jr. | Irad Ortiz Jr. |
| 3. | Catching Freedom | 6-1 | Brad Cox | Flavien Prat |
| 4. | Muth | SCR | Bob Baffert | Juan Hernandez |
| 5. | Mystik Dan | 5-2 | Kenny McPeek | Brian Hernandez Jr. |
| 6. | Seize the Gray | 15-1 | D. Wayne Lukas | Jaime Torres |
| 7. | Just Steel | 15-1 | D. Wayne Lukas | Joel Rosario |
| 8. | Tuscan Gold | 8-1 | Chad Brown | Tyler Gaffalione |
| 9. | Imagination | 6-1 | Bob Baffert | Frankie Dettori |
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