Horse racing is a popular sport to bet on. While there is an emphasis on horse racing in the spring, the sport is year-round and you can find racetracks across the country with American Thoroughbreds almost anytime.

The Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes are the popular spring horse races that make up the Triple Crown.

The Preakness Stakes ranks second in the racing lineup. The race has existed since 1873 and is held on the third Saturday of May each year. The race takes place in Baltimore at Pimlico Race Course.

When it comes to betting on horse racing, there are a variety of bets you can place and various ways to do so. Many states allow online betting on horse racing, but before you place bets, make sure it’s legal in your home state.

The venue for the Preakness Stakes is Pimlico Race Course. (Patricio Smith/Getty Images)

KENTUCKY DERBY: THE RACING HISTORY AND LONG DANCE TRADITIONS

If you’re curious about how to bet on the Preakness Stakes race, read on for betting, odds and more.

  1. What types of bets can I place on the Preakness Stakes race?
  2. Where to bet on the Preakness Stakes race?
  3. What do the odds mean when betting on horse racing?

1. What types of bets can I place on the Preakness Stakes race?

Before placing bets, you’ll want to consider how much money you want to spend, what the payout will be for your bets, and the difficulty levels of betting on different outcomes. Keep in mind that the more difficult the bet is to win, the higher the reward.

The Pimlico Racecourse website highlights a variety of betting options and the level of difficulty for each.

HISTORIC AND MEMORABLE KENTUCKY DERBY RACES FROM 1875 ONWARDS

Horse Racing Preakness Stakes

There are many different stakes you can make on the Preakness Stakes, all with different levels of difficulty. (Patricio Smith/Getty Images)

The easiest bets you can make are win, place and show. For a winning bet, simply choose the winner of the race. In a place bet, the horse you choose must be placed first or second. For a show bet, the horse you choose must place in the top three places.

Then, there are the moderate bets. The bets that fall into the moderate category are exact, quinella and double. In an exact bet, you must choose the first and second place winner of the race in order. In a quinella bet, you pick the top two finishers, but the order doesn’t matter. For a double bet, you must choose the winner of two races in a row.

Additionally, you can place trifecta, superfecta, and pick 3 bets. In a trifecta bet, you must choose the first three finishers of the race in the correct sequence. Superfecta means that you must choose the first four finishers of the race in the correct order. Finally, for Pick 3 bets you have to correctly choose the winner of three races in a row.

The hardest difficulty level includes pick 4, pick 5 and pick 6 bets. For a pick 4 bet, you must pick the winner of four races in a row. To pick 5, you must pick the winner of 5 races in a row. Finally, there is pick 6, in which you have to choose the winner of 6 races in a row.

FUN AND QUICK KENTUCKY DERBY HATS THROUGHOUT THE YEARS

The Preakness Stakes track

You can still bet on the Preakness Stakes, even if you don’t attend the event. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for 1/ST)

Once you decide what bet (or bets) you are going to place, it is time to choose your horses. When you choose your horse, use its number to place the bet.

The final step is to place your bet.

2. Where to bet on the Preakness Stakes race?

If you attend the Preakness Stakes, you can place your bets in person. If you’re not going to attend the race, but want to place your bet in person, check with local casinos, as they may accept bets if it’s legal in your state.

You can also place bets online or through a mobile application. Many states have legalized gambling online and through mobile applications.

States where you can legally gamble online and through apps:

  • Alabama
  • Arizona
  • arkansas
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Florida
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Missouri
  • Mountain
  • Nebraska
  • new hampshire
  • New Mexico
  • NY
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • South Dakota
  • Tennessee
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington
  • West Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • Wyoming

There are numerous online platforms and mobile apps that you can use to place your horse racing bets from home, such as BetOnline, Bovada, TwinSpires, BetUS, TVG, and FanDuel Racing.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

hands holding money

In many states, you can bet on the Preakness Stakes in person or at home through an online service. (Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

3. What do the odds mean when betting on horse racing?

Odds are «the ratio of roughly how much you can expect to win versus how much money you’re going to bet,» according to the Pimlico Racecourse website.

For example, if you see odds of 8 to 5, that means you’ll win $8 for every $5 you bet.