by Emily Gaskin, for Hoosier Park

Anderson, IN — Imagine this—two horses, one a Thoroughbred and one a Standardbred, both with the same name, both entered to race on the same day and both winning their respective contests. The odds of such are remarkable but that’s ‘just’ what happened in the sport of horse racing on Saturday (May 19).

Linscott photo

Justify wins, withTrace Tetrick in the bike, at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino.

Justify, with jockey Mike Smith aboard, crossed the finish line in front to win the 143rd edition of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Racecourse. Trained by Bob Baffert, Justify took a short lead coming down the home stretch and held off hard-charging Bravazo to stop the timer in 1:55.93. With the win, The Kentucky Derby victor took the second jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown.

Just a few hours later, Justify, a 7-year-old trotter, took to the track at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino facing eight other rivals in a conditioned trotting event. With Trace Tetrick in the bike, Justify staged a big rally late in the lane to find the winner’s circle in 1:54.2. Trained by Tyler George, Justify scored his second win of the season and established a seasonal best mark.

While it’s unknown at this time when Justify, the Standardbred, will be entered to race again, Justify, the Thoroughbred, will race for the Triple Crown in three weeks, June 9, in the Belmont Stakes. Only 12 horses have accomplished the Triple Crown feat. Hoosier Park will host a full-card simulcast along with a complete day of activities and live racing to compliment the Belmont Stakes.

Live racing at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino will continue on Tuesday (May 22) with a 12-race card featuring a $15,000 Guaranteed Hoosier High-5 pool with $4,792.22 in carryover money. The Hoosier High-5, also known as the pentafecta, is featured in the last race of every program at Hoosier Park and features a reduced takeout of 12 percent.

With a daily post time of 6:30 p.m., live racing at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino will follow a Tuesday through Saturday schedule and be conducted through Nov. 10. For more information on the upcoming entertainment and live racing schedule, please visit www.hoosierpark.com.