BALTIMORE - Trainer Bob Baffert said that Black-Eyed Susan winner Fiftyshadesofhay will be heading home to Southern California next week, but she will definitely be back out on the road this summer with the Grade 1 Alabama at Saratoga being her next major objective.

“She’s just maturing, she’ll get better with age,” Baffert said Saturday morning, the day after Fiftyshadesofhay rallied from well off the pace to win the Grade 2, $500,000 Black-Eyed Susan by a neck over Marathon Lady. “Distance is not a problem for her. The mile and a quarter will be good for her.”

OPELOUSAS, La. - Stalking the pace under clever handling by Mark Guidry, Unitas finished strongly to prove best in Friday night's $50,000 Need for Speed at Evangeline Downs.

Live video: Preakness Day races from Pimlico »

BALTIMORE - Kentucky Derby winner Orb was out for light exercise Saturday morning at Pimlico Race Course, some 12 hours before he is to run in the Grade 1, $1 million Preakness Stakes. He was one of a handful of horses that trained during an abbreviated session. Others training included Departing and Goldencents.

Total handle on the 13-race card at Pimlico Race Course on Friday featuring the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes was down 3.9 percent compared to wagering on the same card last year, according to an analysis of the racing charts for each year.

Commingled handle for the 13 races was $12.49 million, according to the charts, compared to $12.99 million last year. The Black-Eyed Susan, which had its purse bumped from $300,000 to $500,000 this year, had seven runners this year, compared to nine last year, and the Pimlico Special had six runners, compared to nine for the 2012 running.

BALTIMORE - Kentucky Derby winner Orb closed as the 4-5 favorite after Friday’s early wagering for the Grade 1, $1 million Preakness Stakes, which will be run Saturday at Pimlico Race Course. There was $178,780 in the win pool, which reflects only money bet in Maryland. 

[2013 PREAKNESS STAKES: Latest news, video, and more]

The final odds from Friday’s advance wagering offered on the Preakness are as follows:

BALTIMORE – It really is true. Good things do come to those who wait.

Emotional Kitten was entered in a stakes race on Kentucky Derby Day, but her trainer, Wesley Ward, told owner Ken Ramsey he thought she would benefit by having a couple more weeks until her next start. That came on Friday, and the wait was worth it, because Emotional Kitten scored a mild upset in the $100,000 Hilltop Stakes for 3-year-old fillies on the turf at Pimlico.

BALTIMORE - With 3-5 favorite Last Gunfighter taking Friday’s Grade 3, $300,000 Pimlico Special, here are the will pays for a $2 ticket in the Pimlico Special-Preakness double.

There was $694,983 wagered in the pool.

Last Gunfighter (No. 7) with:
1. Orb  $5.80
2. Goldencents $49.40
3. Titletown Five $344.40
4. Departing $55.20
5. Mylute $75.00
6. Oxbow $100.80
7. Will Take Charge $60.20
8. Govenor Charlie $60.20
9. Itsmyluckyday $45.40

BALTIMORE - Last Gunfighter keeps trumping himself. He won his sixth straight race Friday in the Grade 3, $300,000 Pimlico Special, and after he ran down a loose-on-the-lead horse, his trainer, Chad Brown, called the performance Last Gunfighter’s best to date.

BALTIMORE - For the second straight year, Sensible Lady won the $100,000 The Very One Stakes on the Black-Eyed Susan undercard Friday at sunny Pimlico Race Course.