[2][3] Due to effects from the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 edition was run outside of its normal May schedule, contested as the final leg of the Triple Crown on October 3, without spectators.

[5] The 2021 Triple Crown races returned to their traditional sequence and schedule, with Medina Spirit winning the 2021 Kentucky Derby on May 1.

[9] In the first week of May, trainer Brad Cox stated that Mandaloun, who had finished second in the Derby and stood to be declared the winner upon a disqualification of Medina Spirit, would bypass the Preakness.

[7] In their absence, the main rival to Medina Spirit was expected to be his stablemate, Concert Tour, who had won two stakes races but finished third in his most recent start in the Arkansas Derby.

[11] At the time the race was run, the top betting favorites were Medina Spirit, Midnight Bourbon, and Concert Tour in that order.