US Horse Racing Shakeup: New 2027 Series Drops Preakness
Churchill Downs Incorporated and the New York Racing Association announced on August 3, 2026 a six-race Thoroughbred Championship Series for the sport's leading three-year-olds, a season-long competition that starts in 2027 and pointedly leaves out the Preakness Stakes, the middle leg of American racing's Triple Crown.
For readers who follow the US sports betting calendar, it stretches the marquee three-year-old story from two frantic weeks to a five-month run.
Six Races Across Three Tracks
The series runs across three venues: Churchill Downs Racetrack, Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course. It opens with the Kentucky Derby on May 1, 2027 and the Belmont Stakes on June 5, 2027, then adds the Matt Winn Stakes at Churchill Downs in July, the Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga in late July or early August, the Travers Stakes at Saratoga in late August and a Championship Race at Churchill Downs in September.
A Points Race For A 5 Million Dollar Prize Pool
A unified points system will rank horses across the six races, with a $5 million prize pool paid out on final standings on top of individual purses. Churchill Downs said the structure is meant to push the best three-year-olds to face each other more often, and to give owners and trainers a reason to keep their horses in training deeper into the year.
"The Thoroughbred Championship Series will extend the excitement of the sport across a five-month season," said Bill Carstanjen, chief executive of CDI. "By connecting these premier events through one championship, we're creating a season-long storyline that benefits the future of Thoroughbred racing."
The Preakness Is Left Out
The Preakness Stakes, run at Pimlico in Maryland, is absent from both the schedule and the list of host venues. NYRA president and chief executive David O'Rourke framed the six races as a starting point rather than a closed shop, and Churchill Downs has said the series was built around a group of races that provided the right foundation. Neither the Preakness, the Haskell nor the Pennsylvania Derby is part of the launch line-up.
The timing matters. Churchill Downs stepped back from the Preakness earlier this year after the state of Maryland committed public money to rebuild Pimlico and keep control of the 150-year-old race. Both Belmont Park and Pimlico have been under major reconstruction, with the Belmont Stakes temporarily staged at Saratoga and the Preakness moved to Laurel Park. NYRA said a rebuilt Belmont Park is central to the new series.
What It Means For The Triple Crown
For bettors, the practical question is what happens to the Triple Crown. The Derby, Preakness and Belmont sequence, with its two-week turnaround from Louisville to Baltimore, has increasingly seen Derby winners skip the Preakness and point to the Belmont instead.
A wider, better-spaced championship could reshape which races carry the most weight, even if organisers insist the series sits alongside the Triple Crown rather than replacing it.
Broadcast And Next Steps
Each race will be televised nationally, with the Churchill Downs races on NBC and the NYRA races on FOX. CDI and NYRA said they will finalise rules, the nominations process, wagering opportunities and sponsorship in the coming months, and the Maryland Jockey Club has not yet confirmed a 2027 date for the Preakness. The full announcement is set out in the companies' joint statement.
