1973 Kentucky Derby entered the homestretch, Secretariat passed Sham in the final furlong and distanced himself to consolidate his lead. Secretariat would go on to win the Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes in the succeeding weeks, thus becoming the ninth horse to complete the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. Thirteen horses entered the Derby, which could have at most twenty participants. Horse owners had to pay a final entry fee of $2,500 to have their horses officially entered. The field was larger than anticipated because of new entries following Secretariat's loss at the Wood Memorial Stakes in New York. The Wood Memorial had
2011 Belmont Stakes able to recover and finished in 6th place. Shackleford finished in 5th place after leading for most of the race before the final stretch. Other starters were Kentucky Derby second-place finisher Nehro and Mucho Macho Man, 3rd in the Derby and 6th in the Preakness. Other Derby contenders Master of Hounds (5th) and Santiva (6th) also ran. Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom was installed as the 2–1 early line favorite. For the first time, the first seven finishers from the Derby ran in the Belmont. The Belmont Stakes Payout Schedule 2011 Belmont Stakes The 2011 Belmont Stakes was the 143rd