Why Kentucky Derby Winner Golden Tempo Isn't Racing in the Preakness Stakes

We'll have to wait just a bit longer to see Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo out on the racetrack again.

On Wednesday, trainer Cherie DeVaux announced in a statement that Golden Tempo would not be racing in the Preakness Stakes on May 16, so as to give the horse "a little more time following such a tremendous effort" in the Derby.

"[Golden Tempo's] health, happiness and long-term future will always remain our top priority," DeVaux continued in her statement. "We are looking forward to pointing him toward the Belmont Stakes and are excited for what lies ahead with this very special horse."

Preakness announcement pic.twitter.com/8JQu7VZlRC
— Cherie DeVaux (@reredevaux) May 6, 2026

Golden Tempo is the second consecutive Derby winner to skip the Preakness; Sovereignty's trainer Bill Mott also decided against the event after winning last year's contest at Churchill Downs.

Both races, plus the Belmont Stakes, comprise the three legs of the prestigious Triple Crown, a long-held series of horse races with only 13 winners to its name. The scheduling of this series has been cause for debate for some time now; all three legs are packed closely together—within a tight, five-week period—which has proven much more difficult and controversial for the modern Thoroughbred than in the past.

The powers that be could, of course, shift the calendar to ensure maximum participation (Golden Tempo is the third Derby winner in the past five years to skip leg two of the Crown), but that would also mean breaking with years and years of tradition. Which is worse?

“I’m all for moving [the Preakness],” Brad Cox, who won the 2021 Derby by disqualification, previously told Sports Illustrated's Pat Forde. “I get history, and I’m a big fan of history, but I think the health and welfare of the horse comes first before tradition. You’ve got to get some longevity out of them. Running them back in two weeks is not necessarily going to help their longevity."

Sovereignty's Mott, meanwhile, insists he did not mean to start a new precedent when he opted against the Preakness in 2025, only to race in and win the Belmont a few weeks later.

“The Triple Crown, I think it’s fine the way it is,” Mott told Forde. “But there’s so many things after. You’ve got some big purses, you’ve got some important races. And I think if you use those horses up in the Triple Crown, a lot of times they can’t make it to the end of the year."

To note, none of the 18 horses that ran in this year's Derby will be heading to the Preakness; Golden Tempo was the only one considered. Race officials are considering moving the race from the third Saturday in May to the fourth in hopes that multiple horses from the Derby are considered for leg two.

So while, from a viewer's perspective, it would have been great to see if Golden Tempo could pull off another big win, you have to respect the choice from both a training and horse welfare perspective. Perhaps next year, things will be different.

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