Not many horse trainers had the success at Baltimore's Pimlico Race Course as Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas, who died on Saturday, June 28, in Louisville, Kentucky. He was 89 years old.

Lukas won the Preakness Stakes seven times, behind only rival trainer Bob Baffert, who won the Triple Crown's second leg eight times.

The Preakness Stakes was Lukas's most accomplished race of the Triple Crown. He had won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes four times each.

Lukas saddled 48 horses in the Preakness since his debut at the track in 1980. 

On June 22, Lukas's family said he had been hospitalized and would not return to training.  

Maryland racing community reacts

The Maryland Jockey Club called Lukas a "legendary trainer" and a "true titan of Thoroughbred racing."

"We extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends, & the entire racing community," The Maryland Jockey Club said on social media on Sunday. "His legacy will forever be part of Maryland Racing and the Preakness Stakes." 

Pimlico Race Course added that Lukas "will be deeply missed."

"It was an honor to witness the legacy of D. Wayne Lukas," Pimlico Race Course said in a statement. "We extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and the entire racing community."     

The Preakness Stakes social media also expressed its sympathy.

"A legend," the Preakness Stakes social media said. "Our hearts our heavy. Our thoughts and well wishes are with D. Wayne Lukas and his family during this time."  

D. Wayne Lukas's final race at Pimlico Race Course

Lukas was in Baltimore for his final Preakness Stakes on Saturday, May 17, training American Promise, which had 15-1 morning line odds to win the race.

American Promise, jockeyed by Nik Juarez, finished eighth out of nine horses.

"The whole secret of this game, I think, is being able to read the horse: Read what he needs, what he doesn't need, what he can't do, what he can do," Lukas said at the Pimlico Race Course in May. "That's the whole key. Everybody's got the blacksmith, everybody's got to the same bed available, the feed man. We all can hire a good jockey. We all can hire a pretty good exercise rider if we've got the means, so what the hell is the difference? The horse is the difference and what we do with him in reading him."  

2024 Preakness Stakes stunner

A Lukas-trained horse won the Preakness Stakes at Historic Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore in 1980, 1985, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2013, and 2024.

 In 2024, Seize The Grey, a gray colt, dashed Mystik Dan's Triple Crown aspirations.

Seize The Grey started with 4-1 odds and ended up taking out the favorite.

That victory moved Lukas within one of the record at Pimlico, inching him closer to his good friend Bob Baffert.

"I'm only one behind him — I warned him already," Lukas said. "It never gets old at this level, and I love the competition. I love to get in here with the rest of them."

Lukas's memorable Preakness Stakes races

Lukas's first victory at Preakness was with Codex in 1980, beating Kentucky Derby winner Genuine Risk. , Genuine Risk's owners challenged Codex's victory, claiming that jockey Angel Cordero Jr. deliberately interfered. 

The Maryland Racing Commission ruled that contact was incidental, allowing the victory to stand.

Tank's Prospect (1985), Tabasco Cat (1994), Timber Country (1995), Charismatic (1999), and Oxbox (2013) were the other Lukas-trained horses to win the Preakness Stakes.