Napoleon Solo Wins 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park

Napoleon Solo held off Iron Honor by 1 1/4 lengths to win the 151st Preakness Stakes on Saturday at Laurel Park in Maryland. The 3-year-old colt finished the 1 3/16-mile race in 1 minute, 58.69 seconds and paid $17.80 on a $2 bet. It was his first victory of the year after two fifth-place finishes.

Solo was the only Grade I winner in the 14-horse field.

He had won the Champagne Stakes by 6 1/2 lengths last October before struggling in the Fountain of Youth and Wood Memorial. Taj Mahal led early but faded to 10th. Iron Honor finished second and Chip Honcho took third.

Summers said the win vindicated the colt after a disappointing 2026 campaign.

“We wish he was here in the Preakness. We were rooting for them when they were thinking about it," Chad Summers said. Jockey Paco Lopez guided Napoleon Solo to his first victory in a Triple Crown race.”

The race was run at Laurel Park because the usual venue is being rebuilt. Attendance was capped at 4,800. Napoleon Solo is now pointed toward the Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park in July. Summers said he hopes the industry can preserve foundation tracks like Laurel.