Animal Kingdom draws closer to his 2012 debut as he turns in a serious move for it
Irrespective of the fact that the 2011 3-year-old champion male, Animal Kingdom, missed most of the 2011 season with an injury, he is most likely to continue from where he left off.
Pointed towards the Grade 1 Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap, Animal Kingdom will return to races after almost 7 months, and his recent workouts suggest that the Kentucky bred Grade 1 Kentucky Derby winner is in good form and ready to take on the challenges presented in the new year.
In his most recent work, Animal Kingdom turned in a swift turf work at Palm Meadows. He breezed five furlongs in 59.98 seconds, much to the delight of trainer Graham Motions, who thought that he wouldn’t be able to take Animal Kingdom out on the track because of overnight rain.
The skies cleared and Animal Kingdom went out to do what he does best. This was his most serious move since returning to training.
The son of Leroidesanimaux, out of mare Dalicia by Acatenango, Animal Kingdom returned to training last fall after completely healing from his hairline fracture, and on 25 January, 2012, he started off 10 lengths behind stablemates, Eagle Poise, and Deal Making.
“I think that’s David just getting him to relax,” Motion said.
“I kind of left it up to him, but I said five or six lengths. David does a really good job on Animal Kingdom; he knows him really well. He’s a little bit tricky, and he’s a little deceiving. In the end, they finished together right after the wire, and he got to gallop out.”
Animal Kingdom’s work was recorded in fractions, as he went the first five eighths in 13.11 seconds, opening quarter mile in 25.01 seconds, a little on the slower side, and he covered the rest of the three furlongs in 36.33 seconds. However, he wasn’t able to out finish his stablemates, finishing 2 lengths adrift of them.
“That was a serious move,’’ Motion said shortly afterwards. “He’s been going halves in 50 and change. He was in need of a serious work, he got a serious work today. He had to ask him to do it.”
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