Laurel Park to host Preakness, spotlighting Prince George's County tourism

Prince George’s County is about to get its first Preakness Stakes, and Laurel Park will become a temporary test of the county’s tourism muscle, business capacity and event infrastructure as horse racing’s second jewel arrives with a $2 million purse.

The 151st Preakness Stakes is scheduled for Saturday, May 16, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, as Pimlico Race Course undergoes renovations in Baltimore. Laurel Park’s published stakes schedule lists the race as Grade I and guarantees $2,000,000 for the winner’s purse, while the track’s Preakness-week slate adds the Miss Preakness Stakes, Sir Barton Stakes, Chick Lang Stakes, Maryland Sprint Stakes, Skipat Stakes, Allaire DuPont Distaff Stakes, George E. Murphy Stakes, Hilltop Stakes, Jim McKay Turf Sprint, The Very One Stakes, Gallorette Stakes and Dinner Party Stakes.

For county leaders, the draw is not just the race itself but the chance to put Prince George’s on a stage usually reserved for Baltimore. County officials say hosting Preakness at Laurel Park is a rare opportunity and the first time the county will host the race, with the event expected to pull in visitors who will need places to eat, stay and move around the region.

The City of Laurel has moved to turn that attention into a civic campaign. Its “Saddle Up, Laurel!” effort is meant to rally residents, businesses and community partners around the event. “Saddle Up, Laurel! is more than a slogan - it’s an invitation,” Mayor Keith R. Sydnor said, signaling that local officials want the race to serve as a showcase for Laurel’s business district and its place within Prince George’s County.

That opportunity comes with a built-in deadline. State officials have said the move is temporary while Pimlico is rebuilt, and Preakness is expected to return to a renovated Pimlico in 2027. Maryland’s broader racing overhaul also puts Laurel Park on a different path, with the state announcing a $48.5 million agreement to purchase the track for redevelopment into a horse-training facility.

Maryland Stadium Authority materials say Laurel Park will ultimately be transformed into a year-round training center with as many as 1,200 stalls. Laurel Park also received approval from the Maryland Racing Commission to conduct 120 days of live racing in 2026, with its winter meet beginning Friday, January 9, 2026.

For Prince George’s County, the coming Preakness will be a one-off spectacle and a preview of how much regional attention Laurel can absorb. If the crowds spend locally and the logistics hold, county leaders may be able to argue that the race did more than fill a calendar slot. It gave Prince George’s a brief but valuable place in the center of Maryland’s racing economy.