When Animal Kingdom slipped and nearly fell coming out of the gates, the 2011 Belmont Stakes was blown wide-open. We don't know if the Kentucky Derby winner would've had more in the tank had he not been forced to play catch-up at Belmont Park, but we do know Ruler on Ice took advantage, racing to the front of the field down the stretch and batting aside challengers down to the wire. The grudge match between Animal Kingdom and Shackleford never materialized as fresh faces took over in the Belmont Stakes.
With the win, Ruler on Ice earned his owners $600,000, a nice windfall for a horse that cost just $100,000 in 2009. If you were to ask around the track on Saturday before the race, few outside Ruler on Ice's contingent could've predicted he'd be in the winner's circle.
But Ruler on Ice's owners weren't the only ones to come out of the Belmont Stakes with full pockets. The long-shot winner, whose odds at race time were 24-1, gave bettors a nice payday. And with win, place and show spots occupied by horses few expected to be in the running, the exacta and trifecta payouts were jaw-dropping.
#3 Ruler on Ice 51.50 26.00 13.60
#2 Stay Thirsty 19.40 10.80
#5 Brilliant Speed 7.90
$1 Exacta $464.00
$2 Daily Double $994.00
.10 cent Super $3702.00
$1 Trifecta 3-2-5 $4134.00
And here is the official results for Saturday's Belmont Stakes. To relive the action, check out the full video of the race, as well.
1. Ruler On Ice
2. Stay Thirsty
3. Brilliant Speed
4. Nehro
5. Shackleford
6. Animal Kingdom
7. Mucho Macho Man
8. Santiva
9. Monzon
10. Master of Hounds
11. Prime Cut
12. Isn't He Perfect
Look back on our 2011 Preakness StoryStream to get up to speed To look back at the Derby, check out SB Nation's 2011 Kentucky Derby StoryStream. Also, our horse racing blog And Down The Stretch They Come has two must-read resources for Belmont fans: A Beginner's Guide To Following Horse Racing and a glossary of horse racing terms.