National Treasure took home the 148th Preakness Stakes in Baltimore on Saturday.
National Treasure and Blazing Sevens went head-to-head down the stretch, but the Bob Baffert-trained horse held on for victory in 1:55.12 – it was Baffert’s 17th Triple Crown win and his eighth Preakness victory.
In Mage’s attempt to keep his Triple Crown bid alive, he again tried to come from the outside, much like his Kentucky Derby win, but was unable to get ahead and finished in third place.
Like Derby Day, however, Preakness Day wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, and in his return from a two-year suspension from the sport, Baffert again found himself in trouble.
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Jockey John Velazquez #1 riding National Treasure leads the field in the first pass before winning the 148th running Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course on May 20, 2023 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Patricio Smith/Getty Images)
A horse trained by Baffert had to be euthanized after the sixth race at the track on Saturday.
Havnameltdown suffered what Pimlico’s owners called an «inoperable» leg injury – doctors decided to put the horse down.
The horse’s rider, Luis Sáez, was thrown off the horse and was also hospitalized.
Baffert recently completed a two-year suspension stemming from a positive drug test at Medina Spirit following the 2021 Kentucky Derby. The horse crossed the finish line first in that race, but was disqualified due to the test – the thoroughbred died that December.
Havnameltdown, trained by Bob Baffert, is carried off the track after being euthanized during the sixth running before the 148th Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course on May 20, 2023 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)
PETA, which previously called Churchill Downs a «death camp,» spoke out about horse racing and Baffert himself.
«Pimlico should have followed the example of Churchill Downs and excluded Bob Baffert from the track. Baffert has been implicated in drug scandals, the deaths of seven horses that collapsed in California and at least 75 horses in his care have died.» the organization said. in a statement to Fox News Digital. «Havnameltdown’s tragic death is the latest in a long series of deaths. The racing industry must kick out the bad guys or they will have blood on their hands and blood in their footprints.»
FILE – In this May 1, 2019 file photo, trainer Bob Baffert watches his Kentucky Derby game winner during a workout at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Baffert will not saddle any horses in the Kentucky Derby this weekend. The winner of a record six Derbys will miss the race for the second year in a row while completing a two-year suspension issued by Churchill Downs Inc. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
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The Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the Triple Crown, will take place on June 10 in New York.