Expert Preakness Stakes 2026 Predictions: Iron Honor, Taj Mahal, and Incredibolt

Preakness Stake 2026 odds, posts, date: Top Iron Honor, Taj Mahal, Incredibolt predictions by elite expert

Jody Demling, who has called 11 Preakness winners, reveals his picks for 2026 Preakness Stakes horses such as Iron Honor, Taj Mahal and Incredibolt

By Daniel Lewis

May 14, 2026 at 10:12 am ET • 3 min read

- - -

The 151st running of the 2026 Preakness Stakes is scheduled for Saturday at 7:01 p.m. ET from Laurel Park in Laurel, Md. It will be run outside Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, which is undergoing a $400 million makeover and reconstruction. Iron Honor enters as the 9-2 favorite. Several horses that competed at the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago are skipping the 2026 Preakness Stakes, including Derby winner Golden Tempo.

Other Preakness favorites include Taj Mahal, Chip Honcho and Incredibolt, all at 5-1, with Ocelli at 6-1. Napoleon Solo is at 8-1, while The Hell We Did, Great White and Pretty Boy Miah are all 15-1. Before making any 2026 Preakness Stakes picks, be sure to see the 2026 Preakness Stakes predictions and best bets from SportsLine's elite horse racing expert Jody Demling .

A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling hit the top three finishers in the 2025 Kentucky Derby in the correct order. He also called 11 of the last 21 Preakness winners, including 2023, when he hit the winner, exacta, trifecta and superfecta. He hit the trifecta in the 2024 Preakness Stakes and nailed Journalism as the 2025 Preakness winner. Anyone who has followed him on  horse racing betting sites could be way up.

Claim the latest DK Horse promo code to win a share of $151,000 if you wager $5 on the winning horse :

Now, with the 2026 Preakness Stakes horses finalized, Demling is sharing his 2026 Preakness Stakes betting picks and 2026 Preakness Stakes predictions over at SportsLine.  Go to SportsLine to see them .

Top 2026 Preakness Stakes picks for Taj Mahal, Incredibolt, Iron Honor

One of Demling's surprising 2026 Preakness Stakes picks: He has Taj Mahal outside the top 5 on his projected leaderboard despite him being tied with Chip Honcho and Incredibolt for the second-lowest odds at 5-1. He's a perfect 3-for-3 in his career, with all his wins coming at Laurel Park. That comfort level around this track is a big factor in why he's among the favorites. Level of competition, however, is a question mark since he hasn't faced the caliber of horses that many who were on the Derby trail have, so Demling does not have him as a top-3 pick in his early Preakness predictions.

Demling also has his predictions for the favorite, Iron Honor (9-2). Demling knows Iron Honor has a solid bloodline but has questions following his most recent race. The son of Nyquist, the 2016 Kentucky Derby champion, Iron Honor will look to improve upon his seventh-place finish at the dirt-fast 2026 Wood Memorial. Albus won that 1 1/8-mile event, followed by Right to Party and Ocelli, who is also set to run at the 2026 Preakness Stakes.

The Chad C. Brown-trained colt had won his first two races. He took first at the dirt-fast MSW at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, N.Y. Iron Honor followed that up with a first-place finish at the 2026 Gotham Stakes. Two of Brown's horses have won the Preakness as Cloud Computing won it in 2017 and Early Voting in 2022.

Bet the Preakness Stakes at 1/ST BET, where you can get up to $500 in wagering credits ($20 per $100 wagered) :

Demling has also evaluated the chances of Incredibolt, who is 5-1 on the morning line.  One of three holdovers from the Kentucky Derby, Incredibolt placed sixth at Churchill Downs, as he's alternated wins with sixth-place finishes over his last four starts. He prevailed at the G3 Street Sense Stakes and the Virginia Derby while also finishing sixth, among six horses, at the G3 Holy Bull Stakes. Incredibolt is trained by Riley Mott, who will be making his Preakness debut, but the horse's jockey, Jamie Torres, won the 2024 Preakness aboard Seize the Grey.  See what horses Demling is backing at SportsLine .

How to make 2026 Preakness Stakes predictions, bets

Demling is also especially high on an epic double-digit longshot "with a chance" to win it all. Anyone who backs this sleeper pick could hit it big.  Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected 2026 Preakness Stakes leaderboard, over at SportsLine .

Which horse wins the Preakness Stakes 2026, and which stunning longshot is a must-back? Check out the latest 2026 Preakness Stakes odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Demling's picks for the Preakness Stakes, all from the expert who has nailed the last three winners .

2026 Preakness Stakes odds

Post Horse  Odds Projection 1 Taj Mahal 5-1 SEE PICKS 2 Ocelli 6-1 SEE PICKS 3 Crupper 30-1 SEE PICKS 4 Robusta 30-1 SEE PICKS 5 Talkin 20-1 SEE PICKS 6 Chip Honcho 5-1 SEE PICKS 7 The Hell We Did 15-1 SEE PICKS 8 Bull By The Horns 30-1 SEE PICKS 9 Iron Honor 9-2 SEE PICKS 10 Napoleon Solo 8-1 SEE PICKS 11 Corono De Oro 30-1 SEE PICKS 12 Incredibolt 5-1 SEE PICKS 13 Great White 15-1 SEE PICKS 14 Pretty Boy Miah 15-1 SEE PICKS

Join the Conversation comments

_Originally reported by [CBS Sports](https://www.cbssports.com/general/news/preakness-stake-2026-odds-posts-date-iron-honor-top-taj-mahal-incredibolt-predictions-by-elite-expert/)._