Animal Kingdom sent to Graham Motion’s Fair Hill Training Center to prepare for the Preakness Stakes
The Kentucky Derby winner, Animal Kingdom, was loaded in a van on Tuesday morning, May 9th, to be sent to Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland. The colt’s departure was witnessed by just one photographer and a reporter, a perplex contrast to
the warm welcome he received when he won the Kentucky Derby.
Summer Soiree, trained by Graham Motion, accompanied the Derby winner. The training Center is home base of the trainer, Graham Motion.
Animal Kingdom, who has been walking daily in Churchill Downs’s Barn 22, will stay at Elkton till he makes his return to the track in Maryland on Wednesday.
The colt has proven to perform equally well on both, turf or dirt surfaces.
His trainer also voiced his opinion about this, saying, “Some of the best horses were ones who were able to handle both (turf and dirt), He appears to be one of those great horses that can handle both”.
The three-year-old is expected to prepare rigorously for the May 21st Preakness Stakes on the all weather surface of the Fair Hill Training Center. The son of Leroidesanimaux is expected to gallop daily at the Fair Hill Training Center.
Motion holds a very high opinion of Animal Kingdom. He said, “I have a lot of confidence in this horse, He’s the whole package. He has a tremendous disposition”.
Since Animal Kingdom’s regular jockey, Robby Albarado, is still recuperating from his facial injuries and abrasions and will be not mounting the colt in the Preakness Stakes.
Instead, Motion intends to have John Velazquez to ride Animal Kingdom in the 1 3-16-mile Preakness race at Pimlico.
Other horses that the Preakness Stakes is entertaining include the new shooter, Astrology, Dance City and Sway Away.
Astrology breezed the six furlongs in 1:12.40 at Churchill Downs on May 9th. He is trained by Steve Asmussen.
Dance City finished five furlongs in a final time of 1:01 on May 8th. Dance City is trained by Hall of Fame’s trainer. Todd Pletcher. He finished third in the Arkansas Derby held on April 16th, 2011.
The Jeff Bonde trained, Sway Away, the completed six furlongs in 1:11.60 on May 7th and was listed 21st on the Derby earnings list.
Motion is still unsure whether Animal Kingdom will have his final breeze for the Preakness Stakes. If Animal Kingdom is able to win the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes, he would be the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978.
The third and the final leg of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, will take place on June 11th.
Tags: