LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Napoleon Solo spent much of Saturday afternoon staring down the hometown horse.
Then he ran him down.
Tracking Maryland-bred Taj Mahal through a sharp early pace, Napoleon Solo surged to the lead entering the stretch and held off a late charge to win the 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park on Saturday.
With Paco Lopez aboard, Napoleon Solo settled just off Taj Mahal through fractions of :22.66 and :46.66 before making his move around the far turn. By the top of the stretch, the Chad Summers-trained colt had taken command and had just enough left to hold off the closers late.
“We just kind of stayed the course and stayed the course,” Summers told NBC afterward. “We had a lot of critics out there that told us to just shut up, and we just kept with it, and it worked out today.”
Napoleon Solo entered the Preakness after finishing fifth in both the Wood Memorial and Fountain of Youth Stakes. Summers said the colt had battled a bruised foot earlier this spring, forcing the connections to skip the Arkansas Derby and ultimately the Kentucky Derby trail.
Instead, the colt arrived fresh for the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown and delivered Lopez his first career Triple Crown race victory.
“You pick up the right horse,” Lopez told NBC's Donna Brothers. “That was a big thing.”
Taj Mahal set the pace before finishing second, while the rest of the 14-horse field — the Preakness’ largest since 2011 — chased on a fast track under sunny skies at Laurel Park.
This story will be updated.
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