Preakness: Animal Kingdom arrives at Pimlico
Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom arrived àt Pimlico at 6:45 am, just 12 hours before he tries to keep his Triple Cown hopes alive In Saturday's $1 million Preakness Stakes.
David GreningMay 21, 2011
Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom arrived àt Pimlico at 6:45 am, just 12 hours before he tries to keep his Triple Cown hopes alive In Saturday's $1 million Preakness Stakes.
Dialed In and Animal Kingdom were co-favorites in advance wagering for the 136th Preakness at Pimlico, although the two-day daily double wager combining the Black Eyed Susan Stakes on Friday with the Preakness suggests Animal Kingdom will be a solid favorite when the second jewel of the Triple Crown is run Saturday.
Video from Pimlico: Mike Watchmaker's Preakness picks and race analysis. Todd Pletcher reacts to the Allaire duPont win by Super Espresso. Animal Kingdom arrives for the Preakness. Plus highlights from Steven Crist's live blog, and interviews with Dialed In's trainer Nick Zito and Hall of Famer Jerry Bailey on the Preakness pace scenario. Check DRF.com throughout the day for more video updates.
Pimlico’s solution to low attendance? A centaur named Kegasus – described on his website as “half-man, half-thoroughbred, all party manimal” - who would serve as race mascot and be charged with the duty of bringing back the party vibe to the Preakness infield.
It would be natural to suspect that Animal Kingdom’s Derby victory might be another aberration. Yet an examination of the race indicates that his performance was legitimate.
Daily Racing Form handicappers Mike Beer, Marcus Hersh, and Dan Illman were online from 3 to 5 p.m. Eastern on Friday, May 20, to discuss the races on Friday's Black-Eyed Susan card at Pimlico and handicap Saturday's Preakness Stakes. A transcript will be posted shortly.
Animal Kingdom will be on all my tickets, but so will the lone horse who I think had a legitimate excuse in defeat behind him at Churchill Downs: Dialed In, who ran eighth as the favorite but had no chance at all after falling back to last place behind one of the slowest paces in Derby history.
Video: Derby winner and Preakness favorite Animal Kingdom gallops at Fair Hill, Md., on Wednesday. Comments from trainer Graham Motion and owner Barry Irwin.
Historic front pages of the Daily Racing Form's Preakness coverage through the years, including wins by Sir Barton and War Admiral.
Just one look, that’s all it took for Animal Kingdom to go from mystery horse to respected leader of the pack. A 20-1 outsider at the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago in his first race on dirt, Animal Kingdom’s dominating victory has made him the clear-cut favorite for the 136th Preakness Stakes on Saturday at Pimlico.