Pimlico Race Course will begin demolition after this weekend's Preakness

While Baltimore’s Historic Pimlico Race Course is being prepared for the 150th running of the Preakness Stakes — which you can watch on NBC or Peacock beginning at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, with the main event slated for 6:50 p.m. ET — demolition of the venue will begin soon after the last horses leave the oval this weekend.

While Baltimore’s Historic Pimlico Race Course is being prepared for the 150th running of the Preakness Stakes — which you can watch on NBC or Peacock beginning at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, with the main event slated for 6:50 p.m. ET — demolition of the venue will begin soon after the last horses leave the oval this weekend.

Here is everything you need to know about Pimlico Race Course, its history, why it’s being demolished, the plans for renovation and much more.

Located in Baltimore, Maryland, Pimlico Race Course has traditionally hosted the “middle jewel” of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes.

Pimlico, nicknamed “Old Hilltop,” officially opened its doors on October 25, 1870 and first hosted the Preakness Stakes in 1873. In 1890, the Stakes moved from Maryland to a track in New York. The race didn’t run from 1891 to 1893, and then moved to a different track in New York until 1908. In 1909, the race returned to Pimlico and has been hosted at the iconic venue ever since. Pimlico is the second oldest racetrack in the country, behind Saratoga, which debuted in upstate New York in 1864.

Though the track was renovated in the 1950s, the age of Baltimore’s Historic Pimlico Race Course has been a concern for decades. Back in 2019, nearly 7,000 grandstand seats were closed over safety concerns. Renovation plans were discussed but never carried out.