The quest for horse racing immortality has taken an unexpected turn this year. With Kentucky Derby champion Golden Tempo sitting out the Preakness, the dream of a Triple Crown winner has been dashed—at least for the four-legged competitors.

But the human side of the story is far from over. Jockey Jose Ortiz has a golden opportunity to keep his own Triple Crown hopes alive. He'll be riding Chip Honcho in the Preakness, a Steve Asmussen-trained colt who skipped the Derby after some impressive battles with Golden Tempo earlier this season.

Their rivalry has been brewing for months. Chip Honcho kicked off his campaign with a win in the Gun Runner at Fair Grounds last December, then finished fourth behind Golden Tempo in the Grade III Lecomte. He improved to second in the Grade II Risen Star while Golden Tempo ran third, and placed fifth in the Louisiana Derby as Golden Tempo took third again. Throughout those races, Ortiz was aboard Golden Tempo, while Chip Honcho was handled by Paco Lopez and Luis Saez.

But here's where it gets interesting. Asmussen points out that Ortiz was actually the jockey when Chip Honcho broke his maiden last fall at Churchill Downs. "He's familiar with the horse," the Hall of Fame trainer noted. "Through consistently working with Jose over the winter, you're always discussing races and racehorses. It was his belief in Golden Tempo that proved true."

After the Derby, Ortiz reaffirmed his commitment to Golden Tempo and trainer Cherie DeVaux. But he's no stranger to Asmussen's barn—he's ridden three straight races on the stable star Magnitude, including the Group 1 Dubai World Cup. Now comes the dilemma: if Chip Honcho wins the Preakness and heads to the Belmont, which horse does Ortiz choose?

Beyond the jockey drama, the absence of Golden Tempo—following a similar decision by 2025 Derby winner Sovereignty—has renewed calls to rethink the Triple Crown schedule. The current five-week grind has long been criticized as too demanding for modern thoroughbreds. And with Churchill Downs Inc. recently acquiring the "intellectual property rights" to the Preakness, the sport may be at a crossroads between tradition and evolution.

As the Maryland Jockey Club reported midweek, the only certainty is that this year's Triple Crown story is far from over.