all in Legends

When Canonero II won the 1971 Kentucky Derby, he generated a rather modest return for a $2 win ticket.

Yet that $19.40 winning ticket on the "Caracas Cannonball" had nothing to do with the Venezuelan shipper’s merits and everything to do with his inclusion in a gargantuan six-horse mutuel field.

Based on his form and a star-crossed trip to the United States, Canonero probably would have been dismissed at 100-1 odds in the 97th Kentucky Derby. Maybe even 200-1, but nothing even remotely close to his 8-1 odds.

The Preakness Stakes has long been a proving ground for the toughest and most talented 3-year-olds each year. Run two weeks after the Kentucky Derby, colts have traditionally dominated this middle jewel of the Triple Crown, but its 150-year history has seen a few fillies rise to the challenge and etch their names into history.

When the gates fly open each May at Pimlico Race Course (or Laurel Park in 2026), racing fans celebrate more than just the Preakness Stakes — they honor a legacy rooted in the vision of one man: Oden Bowie. As governor and a sportsman, Bowie recognized the potential for Maryland to become a national leader in Thoroughbred racing.

Real Quiet did not look or act the part of a champion early in his career. He was so crooked up front that he sold to Michael Pegram for only $17,000 as a yearling in 1996. He was so lacking in girth that his trainer, Bob Baffert, jokingly nicknamed him “The Fish.”

Sunday Silence spent a lifetime in search of respect, on the track and in the breeding shed. In the end, he earned it.

“He was very good,” said Shug McGaughey, a Hall of Fame trainer who handled arch-rival Easy Goer. “I ran against him four times and he beat us three times. And I ran a pretty good horse at him.”

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