Reviewing Secretariat's Record Time at the 1973 Belmont Stakes

In 1973, Secretariat posted a record time at the Belmont Stakes that has yet to be beaten. In this article, we’ll review Secretariat’s legendary run at the 1973 Belmont Stakes on route to becoming the ninth Triple Crown winner.

There have been some dominant performances when it comes to sports.

Some that come to mind include:

Usain Bolt’s remarkable performance of winning the gold medal in the men’s 100 metres at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics in Berlin, Germany with a time of 9.58 seconds
Tiger Woods winning the 2000 United States Open at Pebble Beach by 15 strokes over Ernie Els of South Africa and Miguel Angel Jimenez of Spain
The Netherlands defeating Great Britain 27-0 at the 2001 European Baseball Championships in Germany
The Edmonton Oilers destroying the Vancouver Canucks 13-0 on November 8, 1985
Two-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek clobbering Karolina Pliskova 6-0, 6-0 in the final of the 2021 Italian Open.

Yes, I know what we saw at the 1973 Belmont Stakes involved a horse and not an individual person. However, what Secretariat was able to achieve almost five decades ago was legendary and deserves recognition as an iconic sports moment.

Secretariat’s 1973 Horse Racing Season

In 1973, Secretariat delivered a remarkable comeback in the Kentucky Derby.

The horse started in last place, but went from worst to first, and beat his nearest competitor, Sham, by two and a half lengths.

Secretariat’s overall time of 1:59.40 and time of 23 seconds in the last quarter mile were both Kentucky Derby records.

Then at the 1973 Preakness, it was deja vu all over again, as Secretariat started out last, and passed all the other horses, including Sham, which finished in second, two and a half lengths behind.

Secretariat at the 1973 Belmont Stakes

Heading into the Belmont, Secretariat was trying to make history by becoming only the ninth Triple Crown winner in horse racing history, and first since 1948, when Citation won all three major horse racing events.

Unlike the other Triple Crown races, this one turned out to be no contest.

Secretariat got off to a much better start, and beat his nearest competitor, Twice a Prince, by a remarkable 31 lengths.

Secretariat’s time of 2:24.00 was the fastest in Belmont Stakes history.

Secretariat Jockey Ron Turcotte

Jockey Ron Turcotte of Drummond, New Brunswick won six Triple Crown races in his career, including three in 1973.

In 1978, Turcotte suffered a tragedy as he fell off his horse at Belmont Park and was left a paraplegic.

Two years later, in 1980, he was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame.

After writing the content for Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame when the museum moved from Toronto to Calgary in 2011, I had the privilege of meeting Turcotte at the grand opening.

Belmont Stakes 2022

The 2022 Belmont Stakes takes place Saturday.

According to MyBookie, the early betting favorite is Mo Donegal at +220 while We The People comes in at +250 odds after drawing post position 1 at Belmont Park.

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