In the wake of Secretariat’s victory in 1973, the Maryland Racing Commission had to deal with hard evidence that the official time of 1:55 flat posted by the track was incorrect, and that Big Red had actually run the 1 3/16 miles in 1:53.40. At least, that was the time provided by various independent clockers, including Frenchy Schwartz of the Daily Racing Form, and verified by CBS video analysis.

FAIR HILL, Md. - It isn't that Animal Kingdom can't handle crowds and chaos. By winning the 137th Kentucky Derby amid all its sound and fury, the colt surely demonstrated certain degrees of resilience and adaptability.

ELMONT, N.Y. - Mucho Macho Man, who finished third behind Animal Kingdom in the Kentucky Derby, worked a half-mile in 49.21 seconds Tuesday morning over a sealed, sloppy Belmont Park training track, his final major piece of training before Saturday’s $1 million Preakness Stakes at Pimlico.

Jockey Rajiv Maragh was up for the move, which Daily Racing Form timed in fractions of 12.27 seconds for the opening eighth, 24.09 for the quarter and 49.21 for four furlongs. He galloped out five furlongs in 1:03.70.

Lucille Stephens, the widow of Hall of Fame trainer Woody Stephens, to whom she was married for 61 years, died on May 14 at her home in Miami Lakes, Fla., after a lengthy illness, according to her nephew Harley Clemons. She was 93.

Funeral services will be held at 12:30 p.m. Thursday at Kerr Brothers Funeral Home, 3421 Harrodsburg Rd. in Lexington, Ky. Burial will follow at Hillcrest Memorial Park, where Woody Stephens is also buried.

Fans of Animal Kingdom will have to look elsewhere for any kind of betting value on the 2011 Preakness Stakes. The Kentucky Derby champ surely will have short odds -- DRF's Mike Watchmaker has him as a 5-2 favorite on his early Preakness line.

Owner's remarks way out of line at Derby festivities

Owner Barry Irwin's post-Kentucky Derby interview on national television ("Trainers respond to Irwin claim," May 11) had to be a first in the history of horse racing. Irwin was given a 30-second "tell us how you feel, Barry' opportunity to share the excitement of winning the Kentucky Derby with all of America. Instead, he chose to use the time to talk about "trainers lying to me."

LEXINGTON, Ky. – An amendment to Kentucky’s racing rules that would seem to entitle a jockey who is replaced on a mount to the same share of the purse as the replacement rider has created confusion among Kentucky racing officials.

If you really want to know where Animal Kingdom came from, you have to hear his original trainer discuss the 2011 Kentucky Derby champion's humble beginnings. DRF's Marcus Hersh did just that and had this to report from Wayne Catalano, who guided Animal Kingdom through his maiden days before losing the horse to trainer Graham Motion:

Ajax Downs, the Quarter Horse track located just north and east of Toronto, will open its doors for a 40-day meeting with a nine-race card on Sunday.

Boosted by an industry development program initiated by the Ontario Racing Commission and the presence of 800 on-site slot machines, Ajax Downs entered a new era last year and fared well in terms of both racing and the marketplace.

It took not one, not two, but three wins in the Kentucky Oaks, along with more than two decades of sustained excellence, for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer to finally get into the Hall of Fame, an honor that was bestowed upon him on Friday, when he was announced as part of the induction class for 2011 for the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.