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Preakness preview: Gayego, Tres Borrachos

Gayego, who was just announced as a Preakness starter earlier this week, is the only colt from the Kentucky Derby field to challenge Big Brown here in Baltimore. Gayego, who was flown in from the West Coast for the Preakness, was having a pretty good year until he finished 17th out of 20 starters in the Derby.

He won the Arkansas Derby (below) and had never finished lower than second in five trips (two as a 2-year-old). In winning the Arkansas Derby he stayed with pace-setter and Preakness entrant Tres Borrachos for most of the race and took command in the final turn holding off a challenger, Z Fortune, in the stretch. Tres Borrachos finished third in the Arkansas Derby. At Churchill Downs, Gayego got off to a poor start from the No. 19 post position and never overcame the traffic. Next to prohibitive favorite Big Brown, Gayego has the next lowest odds at 8-1. At Pimlico, he'll be wearing blinkers to help him focus and he'll be coming out of the No. 12 hole so he'll need a good break from the gate. The jockey is Mike Smith. It may not mean much but in recent years, Smarty Jones, Afleet Alex and Curlin all won the Arkansas Derby and, of course, also won the Preakness.

Tres Borrachos is one of the many longshots who some believe is just filling out the field for Big Brown. He has seven career starts with one win. As you'll see in the video, Tres Borrachos (No. 2) likes to get off to a fast start and tomorrow, he'll be coming out of the No. 2 gate so that should help him. His jockey is Tyler Baze. In the video, Gayego is No. 4.

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About the blogger
Bill Ordine has been a reporter and editor for more than 25 years and during that time has covered Super Bowls, major murder trials, township zoning board meetings and bat mitzvahs. In his time with The Baltimore Sun, he has been an assistant city editor, pro football writer, poker columnist, enterprise sports reporter and now blogger -- which may indicate his editors have yet to find a job he can get right.
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