While Baltimore’s historic Pimlico racing course is preparing for the Preakness Stakes’ Game 150 – you can watch it on NBC or Peacock starting Saturday at 2 p.m. ET, while the main event is scheduled for 6:50 p.m. ET – the demolition will begin shortly after the last horse left the egg this weekend.
Here is everything you need to know about Pimlico racing courses, its history, why it was demolished, renovation plans and more.
Located in Baltimore, Maryland, Pimlico Race Course traditionally hosts the Triple Crown "Middle Bead", namely Preakness Stakes.
Nicknamed "Old Hilltop", Pimlico officially opened on October 25, 1870, and first hosted Preakness bets in 1873. The game was not played from 1891 to 1893 and then moved to another track in New York until 1908. In 1909, the game returned to Pimlico and has been held on iconic venues ever since. Pimlico is the second oldest racecourse in the country, behind Saratoga, which debuted in upstate New York in 1864.
Despite the refurbishment of the track in the 1950s, Baltimore’s historic Pimlico racing course has been a focus for decades. As early as 2019, nearly 7,000 stand seats were closed due to security issues. The renovation plan was discussed but never implemented.
The demolition of the famous Pimlico racing route marks the end of the era, but the revitalization of the structure marks the beginning New era.
On May 7, Maryland released the design concept for the new Pimlico racing course, which will debut in 2027. Demolition is expected to begin in June, ahead of a $400 million redevelopment funded by state bonds.
Preakness Stakes in 2026 will be moving to Laurel Park, which is about 20 miles south of Pimlico. Preakness Stakes is expected to return to Baltimore’s revitalization facility in 2027. Then, once Pimlico is backed up and run, Laurel Park will shut down its own rebuild.
As part of the multi-year project, in addition to the new and improved Pimlico, new hotels, event spaces and state-of-the-art purebred training centers will also be built at Shamrock Farm in Woodbing, Maryland, located approximately 20 miles west of Pimlico. The website is designed with a strong new identity and is inspired by popular Baltimore landmarks such as the Rawlings Conservatory of Druid Hill Park and the original Pimlico Clubhouse. The state will point at least $110 million to the new training facility that will provide 328 acres of pastoral acres for more than 800 horses boarding, for housing for backward workers and the same training track as Pimlico. The Maryland Stadium authorities, in partnership with the Jockey Club and Park Hection Community of Maryland, will work to build new games and will work with new competitions.
The decision to revitalize Pimlico is an important step in promoting the future of Maryland’s purebred racing and growing local and state economies. The new facility will support approximately 500 jobs and over 100 racing days each year. Pimlico currently holds about 15 racing days each year.
“Today, we have taken a new, reimagined Pimlico,” said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. “Together we will continue to drive economic growth across Baltimore and across the state.”
In April, the Maryland Purebred Raceway Operations Bureau announced that it will be created in 2023, and the agency will transition in July 2025 in 2023. The Maryland Jockey Club will operate under the Maryland Economic Development Corporation (MEDCO).
“We are excited to offer racing fans and Park Heights communities a new modern Pimlico,” said Craig Thompson, chairman of the Maryland Stadium Authority. “This work is bigger, historic and important. It’s about bringing hundreds of millions of dollars in state investment to Park Heights and working with Medco and local communities to achieve a shared vision for the future.”
Despite 1/ST (formerly known as Stronach Group) transferring Pimlico operations to January 1, 2025, the company is still leading Preakness this year and next year. Maryland will control the bets in 2027 and beyond. As part of the long-term agreement, the state will essentially license the event name from 1/ST.
“Private operators are unlikely to want to come in because ‘What are the benefits of private operators?’ They are making money,” said Alan Foreman, president and CEO of the Purebred Cavalry Association. "(The Track) has no games in Maryland - they get a small portion of the game revenue to improve capital improvements. And, there is actually no other advantage except the operators who are eager for Preakness."
It is important to note that in addition to Preakness Stakes, Pimlico has other races. That being said, the owner of Pimlico's track record is 1 3/16 miles away, which is Farma Way, with a time of 1:52 2/5 in 1991.
In 1973, the Secretariat kept the Preakness record at 1 3/16 miles, at 1:53 2/5.
notes: Since its debut in 1873, Preakness has been staged at seven different distances. From 1925 to today, the distance to run is set to 1 3/16 miles.
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