Belmont Stakes 2011: Can Shackleford Beat Animal Kingdom Again?

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Shackleford Could Win 2 Out of 3 Triple Crown Races if He Can Win at Belmont Stakes

Shackleford beat Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom at the Preakness last month. Can he do it again in New York?

This will be the 22nd time the Derby winner and Preakness winner match up at Belmont. Preakness winners have won nine races while Kentucky Derby winners have come out victorious four times.

In an especially weak year of three-year-old horses, Shackleford might be the best of the group. Animal Kingdom was inexperienced prior to the Kentucky Derby, but came out of nowhere (20-1 odds) at Churchill Downs. Shackleford was the more experienced horse, but ran a poor race.

Even though Shackleford won the Preakness, right now Animal Kingdom looks tough to beat. If the Preakness had been another couple tenths of a mile, he might have pulled ahead and been looking at a possible Triple Crown. Jockey John Velasquez surely knows this and will likely start pushing earlier at Belmont.

Shackleford will have to run an even better race, and so far all signs are looking up, trainer Dale Romans told The New York Times.

“I am excited he’s doing so well and coming into the race the right way. I think he’s going to be very competitive,” Romans said. “I thought he went around there really well, and it looked like he did everything the way he was supposed to.”

Few people know a horse as well as a trainer, but with horse racing, results are always up in the air. That's why big money is made (but mostly lost) at the racetracks.

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