2026 Preakness Exacta and Trifecta Picks

The 151st Preakness Stakes happens Saturday, May 16, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. The race has new scenery in 2026 because its traditional home, Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, is under construction. The rebuild will be done in time for the race to be back there next year. But, even though this year’s edition is at Laurel for the first time ever? It’s still a $2 million race, it still covers 1 3/16 miles on the dirt, and it’s still the showpiece of the third Saturday in May.

Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo is not coming to the Preakness; trainer Cherie DeVaux decided to point him to the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga instead, much like Bill Mott did last year when bypassing the 2025 Preakness Stakes with Sovereignty. However, without a horse looming heavy over the field, a lot of connections decided to take a shot.

A full field of 14 of the best three-year-olds in the country will line up in the Preakness starting gate. Gotham (G3) winner Iron Honor is the 9-2 morning-line favorite, but many others will be close to him in the market, including Kentucky Derby third-place finisher Ocelli, Virginia Derby winner Incredibolt, Federico Tesio winner Taj Mahal, and Risen Star (G2) runner-up Chip Honcho.

Get ready to bet on the Preakness Stakes winner with FanDuel Racing. Explore FanDuel Racing's exciting 2026 Preakness promos. Stay updated on the Preakness Stakes odds as we approach the “Middle Jewel” of the American Triple Crown!

New FanDuel Racing users can get in on the excitement: place a $5 bet on any race at any track and get $25 back in Racing Bonus. Bet the Preakness!

How to Bet Exactas and Trifectas

You may be familiar with straight bets such as win wagers, but the best way to make big money betting the Preakness is by playing exotics. Before you start your Preakness Stakes betting, it is a good idea to learn what exactas and trifectas are, what strategies exist for betting them, and the costs and benefits of those strategies.

What are Exactas and Trifectas?

The classic win bet is just that: the bet cashes if your horse wins. Exactas and trifectas are just an extension of that: instead of betting on just the first horse to cross the wire, you are betting on the first few horses across the wire.

To cash an exacta, you need to have the first two finishers in the correct order. In a trifecta, you are betting on the first three horses to finish, in exact order. These are harder to get correct than just picking a winner. However, especially in races like the Kentucky Derby with huge fields, getting them correct can lead to a huge payout.

Horse Racing Exacta and Trifecta Betting Strategies

These are the basic strategies for playing exactas and trifectas.

Straight Exacta or Trifecta: One Combination

You can bet the exacta or trifecta straight, just one sequence or two or three horses. However, this is uncommon in practice. If you have a very strong opinion that one horse is likely to finish first and another horse is likely to finish second, a straight exacta can be the right move in a race. However, it is more common to bet multiple possible combinations, and the large payouts when a live long shot runs into the top two or three can make this a profitable strategy.

Boxed Exacta or Trifecta

The opposite of betting a single combination is by betting an exacta box or a trifecta box. In a box, you are taking a group of horses you think can finish in the top two or three and betting all possible combinations of groups of those horses finishing first or second for an exacta, or first, second, and third for a trifecta.

A box can make sense if you have a short list of horses you want to play, especially if most or all of them are long shots. But, the price escalates rapidly: for example, if you play a trifecta box, and you think there are seven horses with a chance at the top three, and you want to play every combination? There are seven possible horses who can win, then six possible horses behind each of those, then five possible horses who can be third behind those two. That’s seven times six times five – or, 210 combinations.

These are the common costs of exacta and trifecta boxes at the minimum bets offered in the Preakness Stakes:

Using a Key Horse in Exactas and Trifectas

You can cover multiple combinations while focusing on stronger opinions by using a key horse. A key horse is just like it sounds: they are a single horse who forms the key to your bet, and you are leaning on them to finish in a certain position.

One way of using a key horse is by betting for a horse to finish in a particular position in your exacta or trifecta. This is most often done by keying a horse to win (“keying on top”), though you can also key a horse in second or third. For example, if a horse finishes second often, keying a horse in second in exactas and trifectas can be just the right move.

Then, you just play the other horses you think can finish in the exacta or trifecta in the other spots where you do not have your key horse. You have fewer winning combinations since the key horse has to finish in the spot where you placed them, but also, you are putting your money on your opinion about that one horse.

Finally, a good middle ground between a key and a box can be a wager sometimes called a “key box.” In an exacta key box, you are wagering on a situation that has your keyed horse finishing either first or second, with any of your other horses of interest in the other spot: it’s basically two separate key bets, one keying them in first and one keying them in second. The trifecta key box works similarly, except it’s like three key bets at once: one keying them in first, one keying them in second, and one keying the horse third.

This can be a useful exacta or trifecta wager structure when you bet the Preakness Stakes. Though the smaller field means that the race is typically a little less chaotic than the Kentucky Derby, plenty can happen with even an eight-horse field, or nine, or ten, common Preakness field sizes. Even the best horse on the day can finish second or third due to trip trouble, and in such a large field, the risk versus reward ratio often merits the cost of covering situations in which your key horse finishes anywhere in the exacta or trifecta.

2026 Preakness Stakes Field

Now you know how to put together exacta and trifecta tickets, and the pros and cons of different ticket structures. Let’s use that to make some money in the 151st Preakness Stakes!

This is the official field of 14 for the 2026 Preakness Stakes, including post positions, entrants, trainers, and morning-line Preakness Stakes odds released at Monday’s draw:

Preakness Stakes betting opens Friday, May 15, so make sure to track the odds on FanDuel Racing. This can help you get an idea of which horses may be an overlay or underlay come post time, and help you find as much value as possible in the betting pools as the board becomes a gradually better predictor of final odds.

2026 Preakness Stakes Contenders

Consider these top contenders when making your wagers for the 2026 Preakness Stakes.

Exacta and Trifecta Key

The old adage is that the pace makes the race. The Kentucky Derby fell apart … and though most of the possible pace horses are different in the Preakness than they were in the Kentucky Derby, the fact remains that most of this 14-horse field does its best work on or near the lead. The pace is ripe for a collapse, and a horse who can reliably rally from off the pace should be able to pick them all off.

Riley Mott may have made one of the cagiest moves in the history of the Triple Crown when entering Incredibolt as a draw-day surprise. The son of Bolt d’Oro isn’t a deep closer, and he can win from a stalking spot if it suits the race – but he can also run a winning race from off the pace, as he showed when coming from last to first in the Street Sense (G3) last year.

Though he was only sixth in the Kentucky Derby, he was gaining ground late, even at the 1 ¼-mile distance, looking like a horse with more stamina than his sire Bolt d’Oro had. If he hadn’t had to swing around an extremely long line of horses in upper stretch, he probably would have finished closer – he probably wouldn’t have beaten Golden Tempo and Renegade, but certainly would have been beaten less than four lengths in the end.

Incredibolt's Kentucky Derby is a good race to be coming off of, especially since the race is going to set up once again for an off-pace runner. He is a confident key for the exotics.

More Exacta and Trifecta Horses

Ocelli still hasn’t won a race yet (outside of the Aiken Trials, emphasis on Trial…), but he ran the race of his life at Churchill Downs in the Kentucky Derby, leading late and just getting caught by Golden Tempo and Renegade. He won’t be 70-1 in the Preakness; he’ll be in the top echelon of the market, probably not the betting favorite but fairly close to it. Even so, he should get the same pace setup in the Preakness that assisted him in the Kentucky Derby, and the slight cut back in trip should move him forward as well. If he wins the Preakness, he’ll be the first horse to break his maiden in the second jewel of the Triple Crown since 1888, but somehow that won’t feel too surprising given the form he brings in.

The Hell We Did started his career under the radar, racing at tracks in Oklahoma and New Mexico. But, trainer Todd Fincher has never been afraid to bring a good horse from that circuit to the big time if he thinks they fit. The Hell We Did, a half-brother to Fincher’s Grade 1 winner Senor Buscador, didn’t disgrace himself at Keeneland when he disputed the pace and chased on for second in the Lexington. Perhaps he got a little too keen in his first time trying two turns. If The Hell We Did and Luis Saez can settle back off the pace a bit – something the son of Authentic was able to do over shorter distances in his earlier races – he can stay out of the early brouhaha and make a menacing late run.

In a field of 14, there’s usually a major long shot worth a look for exacta, trifecta, and even superfecta bets; for this, Bull by the Horns appeals. He has to move forward, since he has yet to prove himself against horses of this class. But, there just aren’t very many closers in this field, and on his best days – as in, his maiden win at Gulfstream and the Rushaway at Turfway – he can make a nifty closing run. Being by Essential Quality out of a Blame mare, there’s some pedigree potential. And, trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. has been springing surprises left and right with shippers in huge races this year, horses like Claret Beret in the Apple Blossom (G1) and R Disaster (G1) in the Derby City Distaff. Especially with the right running style, he’ll be the right price to consider for another Saffie Joseph surprise.

Taj Mahal is the wild card in the Preakness Stakes. Both of his stakes wins have come on the front end, but he overcame a poor start to rally from last when he broke his maiden, showing that he can pass horses if he really needs to pass horses. His win in the Tesio was a curious marvel – he looked like he was trying a Shining Copper, Presious Passion kind of move, going 10 lengths clear early. He then settled, let the field come back to him … and then opened up a huge lead again in the lane. The questions are whether he can do that against better horses, and how he will fare with the rail post draw. But, he’s a fast horse, he loves Laurel, and the fact that he has passed horses once in a race gives him a very appealing way out if he does not make the early lead.

2026 Preakness Stakes Exacta and Trifecta Bets

Here are the Preakness betting recommendations for exactas and trifectas in the second leg of the 2026 Triple Crown:

• Preakness Stakes exacta bet: Key box #12 Incredibolt with #2 Ocelli, #7 The Hell We Did, #8 Bull by the Horns
• Preakness Stakes trifecta bet: Key box #12 Incredibolt with #1 Taj Mahal, #2 Ocelli, #7 The Hell We Did, #8 Bull by the Horns

New to FanDuel Racing? Place your first bet of $5 on any race at any track & get $25 back in Racing Bonus! Valid in participating states. See here for full terms and conditions. Learn about today’s other offers at FanDuel Racing Promos.

Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook and FanDuel Daily Fantasy today!

The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.