Preakness Stakes 2026: What Is a Trifecta Bet?

(AsiaGameHub) –   The Trifecta is a type of exotic bet and one of the most potentially profitable wagers in horse racing.

To win a Trifecta, bettors must correctly predict the first three finishers in the exact order. Trifectas are available for this year’s Preakness Stakes, which is scheduled to take place on Saturday at Laurel Park in Maryland.

What Did the Preakness Stakes Trifecta Pay Out Last Year?

Let’s examine the finishing results from the 2025 Preakness to understand how the Trifecta bet works.

Journalism (horse #2), Gosger (horse #9), and Sandman (horse #7) finished in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, respectively. A $1 Trifecta bet on the combination 2-9-7 resulted in a payout of $73.50.

This was a relatively modest payout, as Journalism was the 8-5 favorite, and Sandman was the second betting choice at 4-1 odds. While accurately predicting the top three finishers in precise order is challenging, there are alternative methods for placing Trifecta bets that can increase your chances of winning.

Different Types of Trifecta Bets

The example above illustrates a straight Trifecta bet. Here are other variations for making Trifecta wagers:

Trifecta Box

A Trifecta box bet allows you to wager on the first three finishers without needing to specify the exact order of finish.

By “boxing” three horses, you cover all possible winning combinations. Consequently, a $1 Trifecta box bet will cost $6. If you want to bet on horses #6, #7, and #9 to finish in the top three, you would state at the betting window: “$1 Trifecta box on 6, 7, and 9.”

The cost increases if you choose to include more horses in your box bet:

• 4 horses (resulting in 24 combinations): $24
• 5 horses (resulting in 60 combinations): $60
• 6 horses (resulting in 120 combinations): $120

Trifecta Key

This bet is recommended if you are highly confident that a specific horse will win the race. You designate your “key” horse to finish first and select other horses to finish second and third. For instance, if you believe horse #5 will win, and horses #7 and #9 will finish second and third, respectively.

You would place the bet by saying: “$1 Trifecta Key #5 on top of 7 and 9.” The cost of this ticket is $6.

This method allows the second and third-place finishers to come in either order, which saves money compared to boxing all possible combinations.

Trifecta Wheel

With a Trifecta wheel bet, you can select one or two horses to finish in a specific position and combine them with all possible combinations for the remaining positions. For example, if there are eight horses in the race and you believe horse #1 will win, you would say, “$1 Trifecta 1-all-all.”

This bet would cost $42 to cover every possible combination. The cost of the bet naturally increases with a larger number of horses in the race.

Biggest Preakness Trifecta Payout

The largest Trifecta payout in the modern history of the Preakness Stakes occurred in 2019 when War of Will won the race. The $1 Trifecta bet on the combination 1-10-5 paid out $4,699.80.

• 1st place: #1 War of Will (6-1 odds)
• 2nd place: #10 Everfast (29-1 odds)
• 3rd place: #5 Owendale (8-1 odds)

This year’s Preakness Stakes is anticipated to be a highly competitive race, potentially leading to another significant payout for Trifecta bettors.

See also: Exacta Bets | Superfecta Bets