Nik Juarez could have the local crowd behind him at the 2025 Preakness Stakes in Baltimore on Saturday since the Maryland native will ride American Promise in the 2025 Preakness Stakes. Juarez was born 30 miles from Pimlico Race Course and will make his Preakness Stakes debut on Saturday. At 15-1 in the 2025 Preakness Stakes odds, is American Promise a horse to back when making 2025 Preakness Stakes bets? Journalism is the 8-5 favorite, followed by Sandman (4-1) and River Thames (9-2) in the latest 2025 Preakness odds. Trainer D. Wayne Lukas won last year’s Preakness Stakes, so the local and historic storyline could make American Promise a popular selection to win the Preakness Stakes 2025. With the Preakness Stakes annually featuring many of the fastest horses in North American racing, you’ll want to see what Santa Anita-based racing reporter and analyst Michelle Yu has to say before making any 2025 Preakness Stakes picks, considering the success she’s had handicapping this race.

Yu is coming off a strong 2025 Kentucky Derby where she hit the exacta. She started off 2025 by correctly going all-in on Citizen Bull to win the Robert B. Lewis Stakes, and she also predicted Forever Young’s win in the $20 million Saudi Cup, Journalism’s win in the San Felipe Stakes, Sandman’s win in the Arkansas Derby and Mindframe’s win in the Churchill Downs Stakes this year. Anyone who has followed her on those picks on betting sites like FanDuel Racing and TwinSpires is up huge.

Now, with the 2025 Preakness Stakes post positions set and odds on the board, Yu is sharing her 2025 Preakness Stakes betting picks and 2025 Preakness Stakes predictions over at SportsLine to help fans figure out where to bet the Preakness Stakes. You can head to SportsLine now to see them.

Top 2025 Preakness Stakes predictions

One surprise: Journalism is not Yu’s top choice to win, even though he is the 8-5 favorite in the Preakness Stakes 2025 odds. Jockey Umberto Rispoli is making his Preakness Stakes debut after failing to ride Journalism to a victory in the Kentucky Derby. Journalism finished second in Rispoli’s third Kentucky Derby start, and the jockey never finished better than ninth over his first two runs at Churchill Downs. He has never won a Triple Crown race, which is a concerning trend heading into Saturday.

Journalism has won four of six career races, so he is a deserving favorite for Saturday, especially with Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty not a part of the 2025 Preakness Stakes field. Still, with an inexperienced Preakness Stakes jockey and a trainer, Michael McCarthy, who has just one Triple Crown victory over his career, Yu doesn’t see value in Journalism at his current odds. See which other 2025 Preakness Stakes horses to avoid at SportsLine.

How to make 2025 Preakness Stakes picks

Yu, however, is high on a longshot who “is heavy on the gas.” She is including this horse in her 2025 Preakness Stakes bets, and so should you. She’s sharing which 2025 Preakness Stakes horses to back at SportsLine.

So who wins the 2025 Preakness Stakes, what double-digit longshot is a must-back, and how has Yu constructed her wagers? Visit SportsLine to see Yu’s picks for the Preakness Stakes, all from the Santa Anita-based racing insider who just nailed the Kentucky Derby exacta, and find out. 

2025 Preakness Stakes odds, post positions