In a historic first for the Preakness Stakes, Gold Square LLC’s Napoleon Solo delivered a breakthrough performance Saturday at Laurel Park, capturing the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown with a front-running 1 ¼-length victory in the 151st Preakness Stakes (G1).
With ongoing construction at Pimlico forcing the race to Laurel Park for the first time, Napoleon Solo gave trainer Chad Summers and jockey Paco Lopez their first career Triple Crown victories while answering lingering questions about his ability to handle longer distances.
The son of Liam’s Map had faded to fifth in both the Fountain of Youth (G2) and Wood Memorial (G2) earlier this year after a dominant juvenile campaign that included a 6 ½-length win in the Champagne Stakes (G1). On Saturday, however, he stayed every bit of the 1 3/16 miles, stopping the clock in 1:58.69 as the 7-1 fourth choice in the wagering.
Breaking sharply under Lopez, Napoleon Solo sat just outside undefeated local standout Taj Mahal through fractions of :46.66 for the opening half-mile before applying pressure on the far turn. The pair separated from the field entering the stretch, but Napoleon Solo proved strongest late, holding off a rally from Iron Honor while Taj Mahal faded to 10th.
Summers said the race unfolded exactly as planned.
“That was the plan [to sit near the pace]. We felt he had a high cruising speed. Obviously, the question was, is he going to stay the distance? But there was no doubt about how fast he was.”
Lopez credited the clean break and ideal trip for the upset victory.
“We had a perfect run. I was able to keep the horse in the right position and got away from the gate well, which helped,” Lopez said. “My first [Triple Crown] win. It’s so exciting. I’m going to celebrate tonight.”
Iron Honor, the 9-2 morning-line favorite for trainer Chad Brown, rallied from sixth to finish second under Flavien Prat after racing wide on both turns.
“He was a bit wide on both turns and it probably took the starch out of him a little bit when it mattered late,” Brown said. “It looked like he was four deep into the first turn and four or five wide into the last turn. I’m not making any excuses, but it made for a very, very long trip for a horse that has never been that far.”
Despite the difficult journey, Brown praised the effort from both his horse and the winner.
“That said, he ranged up, tired and all, he almost got on even terms with the winner, but the winner found more,” Brown said. “You really have to acknowledge how well the winner ran as well.”
“I thought I was going be able to make a move on the winner,” Prat said. “I just couldn’t go by him.”
Chip Honcho finished a clear third after saving ground throughout for trainer Steve Asmussen and jockey Jose Ortiz.
“Jose gave him a really good trip. He ‘handled’ really nicely,” Asmussen said. “He gave a lot of effort. There was a lot of pace in there, but he ran a great race.”
“We had a great trip. I’m very proud of him. No excuses. He gave it all he’s got,” Ortiz said.
Ocelli, one of the more respected contenders in the field following his Kentucky Derby effort, once again made a late rally from 11th to finish fourth despite a speed-favoring track profile.
“The speed didn’t really come back today but he was the only one making a run,” jockey Tyler Gaffalione said. “I’m proud of his effort.”
Incredibolt closed mildly for fifth after tracking the pace early.
“We were in a perfect spot. Very fast in the beginning. Off the turn, just didn’t have enough, but he gave me everything he had,” jockey Jaime Torres said.
Bull By the Horns finished sixth for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., who felt the pace dynamics worked against deeper closers.
“Obviously, the speed didn’t really come back,” Joseph said. “Overall, a good effort.”
The Hell We Did checked in seventh after taking significant kickback throughout the race, while Great White and Robusta finished eighth and ninth, respectively. Taj Mahal, the 9-2 favorite trained by Brittany Russell, weakened after contesting the pace every step of the way.
Further back, Corona de Oro never fired, Talkin endured traffic trouble and exited with a cut on his hind tendon, and Crupper’s connections believed a poor break eliminated his chances early.
Talkin, one of the buzz horses and wise-guy plays leading into the race, never got the clean trip many expected after breaking sharply from the gate under Irad Ortiz Jr.. The Danny Gargan trainee found traffic entering the first turn before fading to finish 12th.
“He broke sharp but going into the turn he got into some trouble,” Ortiz said. “There was a rush inside and then I was in a bad spot with the outside horses coming over. After that I felt like I’d have a beautiful trip, but not today.”
Trainer Danny Gargan said Talkin also exited the race with a cut to his hind tendon and indicated shorter distances may better suit the colt moving forward.
“Maybe he can’t go that far,” Gargan said. “We’ll regroup and come back another day. Probably, I’m going to cut him back to seven-eighths or a mile.”
For Summers, the victory represented a career-defining moment after years of setbacks.
“There’s been a lot of trials and tribulations along the way,” Summers said. “But we’re still here, we’re battling and we got the victory done on a horse we bought for $40,000.”
