Derby winner Golden Tempo will skip the Preakness, connections say

Horse racing’s spring calendar only really works if the Derby winner keeps going. That’s the whole trick — one race creates the pressure for the next one. But Golden Tempo, the 23-1 Kentucky Derby upsetter, is not heading to the Preakness on May 16. Cherie DeVaux and the ownership group are skipping the middle leg and pointing the colt to the Belmont Stakes on June 6 instead. (courier-journal.com) ### Why is this such a big deal? Because the Preakness is usually where the Triple Crown story either catches fire or dies. Once the Derby winner opts out, that whole national storyline disappears in one move. There will be no Triple Crown bid in 2026, and that changes the way casual fans, bettors, and even rival barns look at the race. (baltimoresun.com) ### What did Golden Tempo just do? He didn’t just win the Derby — he blew up the script. Golden Tempo came in at 23-1, rallied from the back, and beat Renegade after a stretch run that turned a long shot into the center of the sport for a few days. A $2 win ticket pa(baltimoresun.com)y winner. (sports.yahoo.com) ### So why skip the Preakness? Basically, the team is choosing the horse over the headline. The official line from DeVaux’s camp is that this was a group decision made wi(sports.yahoo.com)illing to run top horses back quickly just to preserve the old Triple Crown rhythm. (aol.com) ### Why does the timing matter so much? The gap between the Derby and Preakness is still tight — just two weeks. For a horse coming off the biggest race of his life, especially one that had to make a huge closing run, that can be a hard reset. The Belmont this year is on June 6, which gives Golden Tempo (aol.com)ecovering for another Grade 1 target. (espn.com) ### Why is Laurel Park part of the story? Because the Preakness is being held at Laurel Park in 2026 instead of its traditional home at Pimlico. That isn’t the reason Golden Tempo is out, but it adds to the feeling that this year’s race already looked a little differen(espn.com)out the horse everyone expected to watch. (msn.com) ### What happens to the Preakness now? It turns into a more open race and a less mythic one. Without the Derby winner, the field loses the horse everyone would have been trying to beat, but it also loses the easy narrative. The Preakness now becomes a stand(msn.com)le, and which Derby horses want another shot. (aol.com) ### Does this mean Golden Tempo’s spring is over? No — just rerouted. The plan is Belmont, not rest. And because the Belmont is at Saratoga again this year, there’s even a nice local angle for DeVaux, who is from Saratoga Springs. So the horse is still very much in the three-year-old picture. He’s just stepping off the traditional path between Louisville and Baltimore. (wnyt.com) ### Bottom line? Golden Tempo’s Derby win gave racing a surprise star. Skipping the Preakness keeps that star out of the sport’s next biggest spotlight — but it also tells you where modern horse racing is now. Connections will give up a Triple Crown shot if they think the longer game matters more. (aol.com)