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Baeza & Sandman To Skip Preakness, Will Race in Belmont Stakes

The third and seventh-place finishers in the Kentucky Derby won't race in the next Triple Crown event but plan on running in the Belmont Stakes.
Frank Taddeo|
Junior Alvarado atop Sovereignty wins the Kentucky Derby followed by Umberto Rispoli atop Journalism and Flavien Prat atop Baeza during the Kentucky Derby 2025 race at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on Saturday, May 3, 2025. Mandatory Credit: Albert Cesare/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Junior Alvarado atop Sovereignty wins the Kentucky Derby followed by Umberto Rispoli atop Journalism and Flavien Prat atop Baeza during the Kentucky Derby 2025 race at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on Saturday, May 3, 2025. Mandatory Credit: Albert Cesare/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images | The Enquirer-Imagn Images

While the status of 2025 Kentucky Derby champion Sovereignty remains undecided, the connections of two other top contenders from this year’s Kentucky Derby announced they will be skipping the Preakness Stakes. 

Rather than wheeling back Baeza and Sandman in just two weeks for the second leg of the Triple Crown, the teams of both talented colts will instead aim for the Belmont Stakes on June 7.

After drawing into the Derby field following the scratch of Rodriguez, Baeza made the most of his opportunity, earning his third consecutive triple-digit Equibase speed figure (101) via a solid third-place finish in the Derby. 

Despite the impressive showing trainer John Shirreffs stated on Sunday that Baeza will not run in the Preakness.

“Quite a trip for him the whole week,” Shirreffs said. “He’s never been on a wet surface before, so there was that. Then that big field and the bumping that went on. But in the end, he ran well and we’re very proud of him.” 

The half-brother to 2023 Kentucky Derby winner Mage and 2024 Belmont Stakes winner Dornoch, who outran his 13-1 odds, will likely be one of the top contenders in the 2025 running of the 1 ½ mile “Test of Champions".

Off his seventh place Kentucky Derby finish trainer Mark Casse stated that Sandman will likely follow the same route as Baeza, opting to skip the “The Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown”. 

“More than likely Belmont, but crazier things have happened,” Casse told David Grening of the Daily Racing Form.

Sandman, who was beaten by 12 ½ lengths as the second overall betting choice, will for sure be among the top betting choices once again in the Belmont Stakes due to his pedigree as well as previously breaking his maiden over the dirt surface. His sire Tapit has sired Belmont Stakes winners Tonalist (2014), Creator (2016), Tapwrit (2017), and Essential Quality (2021). 

We need to highlight that this year’s Belmont Stakes will run on Saturday, June 7 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, due to the ongoing construction at Belmont Park.

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Frank Taddeo
FRANK TADDEO

Frank Taddeo is a successful high-stakes fantasy football player who created the first-ever DFS program offered in a Las Vegas sportsbook. Besides contributing NFL fantasy analysis with a Vegas slant, Frank Taddeo primarily performs as On SI’s Senior Fantasy Analyst, providing his significant experience and resources in the sports world.

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