Preakness 2026: How Laurel Park became horse racing’s global stage

LAUREL, Md. — The odds are that Laurel Park will never see another big crowd as it hosts the Preakness Stakes on Saturday and then transitions into retirement as a training track.

Laurel opened in 1911 and, from its start, competed as a distant second to Pimlico in Maryland. Seabiscuit was trained at Laurel in 1938 before the big match race with War Admiral. For many years, Laurel was owned by James Butler, an Irish-born grocery magnate whose stores were second only to the A&P in New York City.

In 1950, Baltimore business owner Morris Schapiro bought the Laurel track and gave it to his son, John D. Schapiro, to run.

This is where the Laurel story gets interesting.

Morris Schapiro was an American immigrant success story. He arrived in the country from Latvia in 1902 with little money and later salvaged bricks from the 1904 Baltimore fire. This led to owning a successful scrap-iron firm, and during Prohibition, he owned the Globe Brewery (Arrow beer) and a whiskey distillery.

He was permitted to brew a weak beer and full-strength whiskey for medical purposes, sold through a prescription. He prospered and by 1927 was living in a grand mansion overlooking Druid Lake.

Morris Schapiro bought the Laurel track at a time when Maryland was racing crazy, but Laurel, as a track, did not own a race that was in the same league as the Preakness.

Marketing people suggested that Laurel land a marquee event that would focus attention on what had been just another racetrack. At that time, its name was changed to Laurel Race Course.

John D. Schapiro, his son, made a gamble. What about a race that attracted owners of the leading thoroughbred horses of Europe?

In a brief announcement in The Sun in July 1952, John Schapiro announced there would be a turf (on the grass) race held at Laurel in the upcoming fall.

Schapiro came up with $50,000 in prize money and a stunning 25-pound silver-plated trophy resembling a globe to signify the international nature of the race.

By October, on the day before the contest, the paper’s headline stated, “International Race at Laurel Puts State in World Spotlight.”

All of a sudden, Laurel — built on land prone to flooding — was looking pretty splendid.

The race was named the Washington, D.C. International Stakes, and sought — and received — attention from the capital and other global destinations.

The first International included an entry from England.

“Since the invaders arrival on Tuesday, American horsemen had been inclined to ‘pooh pooh’ the Britishers and many times criticized the manner in which the horses were prepped for the race,” The Sun’s account said. “However, trainer John A. Waugh had the last laugh when his Wilwyn clipped six full seconds off the old track record of 2.36.”