The final preparations are being made for the Preakness Stakes, which will go off at 6:45 PM ET on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. Ten horses are slated to start the race, with five having competed in the Kentucky Derby. Here’s a look at their odds and post positions.

 

2017 Preakness Stakes Odds and Gates

Multiplier Gate 1 25/1
Cloud Computing Gate 2 12/1
Hence   Gate 3 20/1
Always Dreaming Gate 4 5/6
Classic Empire Gate 5 3/1
Gunnevera         Gate 6 16/1
Term of Art Gate 7   40/1
Senior Investment Gate 8 40/1
Lookin at Lee     Gate 9 11/1
Conquest Mo Money Gate 10 18/1

 

The matchup everyone is waiting for is Always Dreaming and Classic Empire. The attention will be on Always Dreaming after he ran away with the win at the Kentucky Derby, but Classic Empire suffered a set back, getting squeezed in the middle of the pack on a muddy track early on. He couldn’t quite recover, but rallied for a solid fourth-place result.

Two of the last six Preakness winners have come from the No. 5 spot, including last year’s winner: Exaggerator. That adds even more value to Classic Empire as a contender. As for Always Dreaming starting from Gate 4, the last winner to come from that post position was Curlin’ in 2007.

The third-favourite, Lookin at Lee, is a strong closer. That might not bode well for the Preakness, which is the shortest of the three Triple Crown races. Nonetheless, he finished in the money in seven of his 10 starts with a pair of wins. Gunnevera is also a closer and has four wins in his 10 starts, including the Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) in March. Conquest Mo Money is coming off back-to-back second-place results – finishing behind Classic Empire at the Arkansas Derby (G1) and Hence at the Sunland Derby (G3). He had won three in a row before that.

Taking a look at some of the statistics in recent history, it looks like the best starting gates are in the middle of the pack. Since 1987, the No. 6 gate has had the best rate of success, producing 20% of the winners. The No. 7 gate is next at 16.7% while the No. 4 gate has been third-best in that span at 13.3%.

Rounding out the rest of the odds are Multiplier at 25/1, and Senior Investment and Term of Art – both at 40/1. Multiplier doesn’t have much experience, as he’s raced only once since breaking his maiden in March, but he’s coming off a win at the Illinois Derby (G3). Senior Investment is also coming off a win – the Lexington Stakes (G3) – but the Preakness looks like a step up in competition for him. Term of Art, meanwhile, is looking for his first win of 2017. Could it come Saturday for a massive 40:1 payout? The longest shot to win the Preakness is Master Derby (23/1) in 1975.

 

*Odds as of May 19, 2017