Sovereignty, winner of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve, will not run in the May 17 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course. Instead, he will be pointed toward the Belmont Stakes June 7 at Saratoga Race Course.

“We received a call today from trainer Bill Mott that Sovereignty will not be competing in the Preakness. Bill informed us they would point toward the Belmont Stakes,” said Mike Rogers, executive vice president of 1/ST Racing, which operates Pimlico.

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“We extend our congratulations to the connections of Sovereignty and respect their decision. We continue to see the excitement building toward the milestone celebration of the 150th Preakness Stakes, and we look forward to an incredible weekend of world-class racing and entertainment.”

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners’ Aron Wellman, head of the group that owns Kentucky Derby runner-up Journalism, said the defection of Sovereignty will have no bearing on their decision to run the son of Curlin in the May 17 middle leg of the Triple Crown or skip it.

“As always, [trainer] Michael McCarthy and our ownership group will make our decision based on what we believe is in the best interests of our horse, Journalism,” Wellman said. “Sovereignty’s status has no bearing on our decision, although fair play to Bill Mott and Godolphin for showing their hand early and not stringing the media and the connections of other possible Preakness starters along. Journalism will return to the track at Churchill Downs tomorrow and we’ll monitor him day by day as we consider his status for the Preakness.”

While each Kentucky Derby winner from 1997-2018 raced in the Preakness, this will mark the third time in the last seven runnings that the run for the roses victor did not move on to the Preakness. In 2019, Country House, who was trained by Mott, missed the classic due to an illness and in 2022 Rich Strike bypassed it to run in the Belmont Stakes.