National Treasure, with jockey John Velazquez, entrance proper, edges out Blazing Sevens, with jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., second from left, to win the148th working of the Preakness Stakes horse race at Pimlico Race Course, on Saturday in Baltimore.

Nick Wass/AP

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Nick Wass/AP

National Treasure, with jockey John Velazquez, entrance proper, edges out Blazing Sevens, with jockey Irad Ortiz Jr., second from left, to win the148th working of the Preakness Stakes horse race at Pimlico Race Course, on Saturday in Baltimore.

Nick Wass/AP

A horse named National Treasure received the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, the second leg of the Triple Crown. The win handed coach Bob Baffert a record-setting victory, hours after he needed to put down an injured horse, and coming upon his return to the race after being banned final yr.

National Treasure entered Saturday’s race on the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore because the second betting selection behind Mage, who pulled off a longshot victory on the Kentucky Derby earlier this month. But ultimately, Blazing Sevens got here in second by a slim margin and Mage took third.

It’s jockey John Velazquez’s first Preakness win, and a file eighth Preakness win for Baffert.

“This horse deserved it. We all thought it was a good horse,” Baffert informed NBC Sports after the win.

A string of current horse deaths have overshadowed this yr’s Triple Crown races.

In the eight days resulting in the Kentucky Derby earlier this month, seven horses died at Churchill Downs.

Hours earlier than Saturday’s important occasion in Baltimore, Havnameltdown, a horse skilled by Bob Baffert, was euthanized after the 3-year-old colt injured its ankle throughout an earlier race.

“Havnameltdown went bad at the top of the stretch, you saw it around the turn and he sustained a really severe injury of his left front ankle,” Dr. Scott Hay, the on-call veterinarian for the American Association of Equine Practitioners, told TVG. “It was to such an extent that it was basically impossible to transport him and they had to euthanize him humanely on the grounds immediately.”

His rider Luis Sáez was flung off the horse. The jockey complained of leg ache after the autumn and was taken to a close-by hospital, in line with the NBC Sports broadcast.

“We are just devastated,” Baffert tweeted. “This is a shock to everyone at our barn who love and care for these horses every day. Hanvameltdown was obviously hit pretty hard coming out of the gate. We don’t know if that contributed to the injury, but we will be fully transparent with those reviewing this terrible accident. Right now, our thoughts are with Luis Saez and we are hopeful he will be okay.”

It’s Baffert’s first time in a Triple Crown race since 2021 due to the trainer’s suspensions stemming from disqualified Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit’s failed drug take a look at.