2024 Preakness Stakes Best Bets: Imagination to Run Wild

The second jewel in the horse racing Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes gets underway this Saturday, May 18. Festivities take place at Pimlico Race Course, one of the most iconic sports venues in the United States. The Preakness is often called the "Run for the Black-Eyed Susans" in reference to the blanket of Black-Eyed Susans, the state flower of Maryland, that is given to the winning horse.

Mystik Dan, the unlikely Kentucky Derby winner, will attempt to write his name in the annals of horse racing history with a victory in the Preakness on Saturday, followed by a win at the Belmont Stakes in June.

Can Mystik Dan shrug off the presence of two Bob Baffert-trained horses and win? Let's dive into all the odds and my best bets below.

2024 Preakness Stakes Betting Odds

When is the 2024 Preakness Stakes?

NBC's live coverage of the 2024 Preakness Stakes will begin at 4:30 pm ET on Saturday, May 18, with post time for the main event set at 6:50 pm ET.

Preakness Stakes Best Bets

Imagination +600

I'll bite on the value of a Bob Baffert-trained horse at +600 odds. The Hall-of-Fame trainer is suspended from Churchill Downs and was thus unable to enter both Preakness favorite Muth and Imagination.

The winner of the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes, Imagination came second in the Grade 1 2024 Santa Anita Derby and has never finished worse than second in six career starts. A 96 Beyer Speed Figure gives Imagination a large runway down the stretch. He'll need it after drawing the widest number nine post for the Preakness. 

Mystik Dan +250

You really thought I was going to leave 'ol reliable out of my best Preakness Stakes bets? We hit on Mystik Dan as a Kentucky Derby sleeper, and I love his chances to continue his ascendancy at Pimlico.

He finished strong at Churchill Downs and has the ability to close quickly in the final furlongs of this race. Trainer Kenneth McPeek has the pedigree and experience at Pimlico to lend to his most prized possession this weekend. He won the 2020 Preakness with Swiss Skydiver. A 50% chance of showers on Saturday at Pimlico could give the Kentucky Derby winner an edge.

Intriguingly, the last time a Kentucky Derby winner was an underdog at the Preakness was 12 years ago, when Baffert rolled Bodemeister in Pimlico as an 8-5 favorite. Kentucky Derby longshot victor I'll Have Another (15-1 in the Derby) once again shocked fans and bettors alike as he strode to the finish line ahead of his much more ballyhooed competition. Can history repeat itself at the 2024 Preakness Stakes?

Preakness Stakes – How to bet on the big race

Many Preakness Stakes bettors will be wondering what type of bet they should place, so using our selections above let's share some ideas.

Win - Imagination +600

While Mystik Dan has the shortest odds of my best bets, I like the price of Imagination at +600.

Win, Place & Show 

If you wish to place the minimum stakes of $2, then it will be a $6 investment to wager on your own pick for the Preakness Stakes to win, place, or show.

This is just a fun bet you can have and something to cheer home for this year's Run For The Black-Eyed Susans.

My best bet for the 149th Preakness Stakes is Mystik Dan to win, place, or show.