The 2011 Kentucky Derby was the 137th running of the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

, on May 7. The race was won by Animal Kingdom, ridden by

John Velazquez John R. Velazquez (born November 24, 1971) is a Puerto Rican jockey in Thoroughbred horse race, Thoroughbred horse racing. He began his career in Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1990. In 2004 and 2005 he was the United States Champion Jockey ...

, trained by H. Graham Motion and owned by

Team Valor Team Valor Stable LLC is an American Thoroughbred horse racing stable based in Lake Worth, Florida. It was founded by Barry Irwin and Jeff Siegel who create partnerships (syndicates) with racing enthusiasts to race Thoroughbred horses at majo ...

. "ESPN Animal Kingdom wins 137th Derby" ESPN.go.com, May 7, 2011, webpage:
ESPN65
The race took place on Saturday, May 7, 2011, and was televised in the United States on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

television network A television broadcaster or television network is a telecommunications network for the distribution of television show, television content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations, pay television providers or ...

. A record crowd of 164,858 was on hand at the track for the race.

Contenders

The leading contenders for the race were Dialed In (Holy Bull, Florida Derby), Uncle Mo (Breeders' Cup Juvenile), Nehro (second in the Arkansas Derby), Midnight Interlude (Santa Anita Derby) and Mucho Macho Man (Risen Star Stakes). Pants of Fire, winner of the Louisiana Derby and ridden by Rosie Napravnik, was bet down from odds of 20–1 on the morning line to 8–1 at post time. Animal Kingdom, coming into the race off of a win in the Spiral Stakes over Turfway Park's synthetic dirt course, was largely dismissed at 21–1.

Details

Shackleford (14) went to the early lead, setting moderate fractions of :23.24 seconds for the opening quarter-mile and :48.63 for the half. He was tracked by Comma to the Top, who tired after the first three-quarters of a mile were completed in 1:13.40, eventually finishing last. Nehro, who had rated a few lengths off the pace, made his move on the far turn and moved into the lead at the top of the stretch. Meanwhile, Animal Kingdom (16) had settled near the back of the back and was in tenth position going into the final turn. Moving four wide, he advanced into fifth place at the mile pole and closed steadily to win by lengths. Nehro (19) finished a neck in front of a late-closing Mucho Macho Man (13), with Shackleford hanging on for fourth. The winning jockey, John R. Velazquez, had recently switched to riding Animal Kingdom, after his prior horse,

Uncle Mo Uncle Mo (March 10, 2008 – December 19, 2024) was an American champion Thoroughbred racehorse who went undefeated in his two-year-old season and was named the American Champion Two-Year-Old of 2010. However, his three-year-old season was disrup ...

(former 2nd choice, 9–2), had been scratched earlier within the week.

Results

*Margins – lengths, neck *Time – 2:02:04 *Track – Fast

Payout

;The 137th Kentucky Derby Payout Schedule * $2

Exacta Parimutuel betting, or pool betting, is a betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and the ''house-take'', or ''vigorish'', are deducted, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among a ...

: (16–19) paid $329.80 * $2

Trifecta Trifecta A trifecta is a parimutuel bet placed on a horse race in which the bettor must predict which horses will finish first, second, and third, in the exact order. Known as a trifecta in the US and Australia, this is known as a tricast in ...

: (16–19-13) paid $3,952.40 * $2

Superfecta {{Wiktionary The superfecta is a type of wager in the United States and Canada parimutuel betting in which the bettor, in order to win, must pick the first four finishers of a race in the correct sequence. This is even more unlikely than a success ...

: (16–19-13-14) paid $48,126.00

Notable achievements

* Animal Kingdom became the first Kentucky Derby winner to have never previously raced on a dirt track. * Animal Kingdom became the first horse since Exterminator in 1918 to win the Derby with only four previous starts. * Animal Kingdom became the first horse since Needles in 1956 to win the race off a six-week layoff.

Subsequent Grade I wins

Several horses from the Derby went on to win at the Grade I level. * Animal Kingdom – 2013

Dubai World Cup The Dubai World Cup (Arabic: كأس دبي العالمي) is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually since 1996 and contested at the Meydan Racecourse in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The race is operate ...

* Mucho Macho Man – 2013

Awesome Again Awesome Again (March 29, 1994December 15, 2020) was a Canadian Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and stallion. As a three-year-old, he won the Queen's Plate in Canada and the Jim Dandy Stakes in the United States. He was undefeated at age four ...

Breeders' Cup Classic The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade I Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race for 3-year-olds and older run at a distance of on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States as part of the Breeders' Cup World Champion ...

* Shackleford –

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually on Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland (except in 2026 when it will move to Laurel Park (race track), Laurel Park dur ...

, 2012

Metropolitan Handicap The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile", is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile (8 furl ...

Clark Handicap The Clark Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in late November at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Among the oldest races in the United States, it was first run in 1875, the year the racetrack opened for business. C ...

* Master of Hounds – 2013

Jebel Hatta The Jebel Hatta is a Thoroughbred horse race run annually since 2000 at the Meydan Racecourse in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Raced on turf, it is open to horses four-years-old and up who were bred in the Northern Hemisphere and to horses three-ye ...

(UAE) * Stay Thirsty –

Travers Stakes The Travers Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is nicknamed the "Midsummer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds accor ...

, 2012

Cigar Mile Handicap The Cigar Mile Handicap is a Grade II American thoroughbred horse race for horses aged three-years-old and older over a distance of one mile and is held in late November or early December at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. The event carr ...

Subsequent breeding careers

Leading progeny of participants in the 2011 Kentucky Derby are as follows. Mucho Macho Man * Mucho Gusto – Pegasus World Cup Shackleford - exported to South Korea in 2020 * Promises Fulfilled – H. Allen Jerkens Stakes Stay Thirsty * Mind Control – Hopeful Stakes, H. Allen Jerkens Stakes Dialed In * Gunnevera – Fountain of Youth Stakes. second in Breeders Cup Classic and Travers Stakes Sources
American Classic PedigreesEquibaseBlood-Horse Stallion Register

References

External links

2011 Kentucky Derby

Photo of winning horse, Animal Kingdom
- from Bleacherreport.net
Photo in Winner's Circle, with the roses
- from TimesUnion.com {{Kentucky Derby Kentucky Derby races

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

May 2011 sports events in the United States 2011 in Louisville, Kentucky

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...