After news that Cherie DeVaux, the first woman to ever train a winner of the Kentucky Derby, decided to skip Preakness 2026 with Kentucky Derby 2026 champion Golden Tempo, conversations in horse racing have again circulated about whether the current state of the Triple Crown is broken or not.
In The Money Media's Peter Thomas Fornatale (PTF) sits with NBC's Randy Moss to talk about the scheduling of the Triple Crown races. Many trainers have expressed disinterest and concern in bringing horses out of the Kentucky Derby back to the track in two weeks to compete in the Preakness Stakes, held traditionally at Pimlico Racecourse but to be contested this year at Laurel Park while Pimlico undergoes renovations. And yet, many trainers including Kentucky Derby 2025 champ Bill Mott have opted to go from the Kentucky Derby to the third jewel of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, which Sovereignty did win with ease over Journalism - a horse who competed in all three legs of the Triple Crown in 2025 including a win in Preakness 2025. Some horses have taken the test unburdened even in defeat, but trainers remain hesitant in the modern age to risk their runners in the Preakness.
So what has to change? Does the Triple Crown necessarily have to change? The Triple Crown in horse racing has always been an elusive and difficult prize but is that reason enough to maintain the current schedule which does not even excite trainers to send their prospects down the Triple Crown trail? The Triple Crown traditionally has been a five-week turnaround between the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes, but would adding more time between those races encourage trainers to participate and help reignite energy for the spectacle, or is it all just bells and whistles? PTF and Randy Moss discuss the issues with the current state of the Triple Crown in horse racing and discuss what options exist around its current dysfunction.
