BALTIMORE — A horse trained by Bob Baffert was once euthanized on the track after injuring a leg right through a race on the Preakness undercard Saturday and sending his unseated jockey to the health center.
Hours earlier than the second one leg of the Triple Crown, favourite Havnameltdown buckled ahead and threw jockey Luis Saez off his again right through the 6th race, and endured operating across the ultimate flip in some misery.
The 3-year-old colt was once checked out by leader veterinary officer Dr. Dionne Benson and others, who made up our minds the injury to his left entrance leg was once inoperable and made up our minds the pony must be put down, in line with a observation from 1ST Racing, which owns and operates the track.
Saez was once mindful and brought to Sinai Hospital for analysis, complaining of leg ache, track officers introduced. He was once attended to by scientific team of workers on the track for a number of mins earlier than being put on a stretcher and into an ambulance.
Havnameltdown’s demise comes on every other main race day, within the aftermath of the Kentucky Derby being overshadowed by seven fatalities at Churchill Downs over a span of 10 days.
“It’s the worst feeling. And we grieve. We do grieve when these things happen. There is nothing worse than coming back and the stall is empty,” Baffert mentioned. “He is a nice horse. He could not have been doing any better. It’s sickening. I am in shock.”
The favourite at 4-5 for the $200,000 filth race and breaking from the interior No. 1 post, Havnameltdown was once bumped out of the gate by No. 2 Ryvit and broke a step gradual however endured operating within the 6-furlong race. Havnameltdown and Ryvit, the eventual race winner, have been out in entrance of the pack coming round the second one flip.
Fans within the crowd at Pimlico Race Course gasped when the pony stumbled earlier than the overall flip and tossed Saez. In an incongruous scene, on the similar time Saez and Havnameltdown have been being checked out, 2Pac’s “California Love” endured blaring from infield audio system arrange proper close to the place it came about.
Meanwhile, on Pimlico’s homestretch, the pony was once introduced below keep watch over by track body of workers, then led in the back of some black obstacles.
“Very unfortunate,” mentioned Tyler Gaffalione, Ryvit’s jockey. “Hopefully Luis is OK. We were kind of heads-up, and he just kind of disappeared. I looked back and saw Luis coming off the side.”
Baffert has horses operating on Preakness weekend for the primary time in two years after getting back from a suspension stemming from 2021 Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit’s failed drug take a look at. He was once now not in a position to go into horses within the Derby both of the previous two years as a part of a choice by Churchill Downs. He may now not have any within the 2022 Preakness or Belmont as a result of a 90-day ban in Kentucky revered by Maryland and New York.
One of his horses, Arabian Lion, gained an previous race. Baffert may be set to saddle National Treasure within the Preakness.
Saez, a Panamanian who became 31 on Friday, at the start was once intended to journey most sensible contender First Mission within the Preakness. But that horse was once scratched on the recommendation of veterinarians as a result of a subject together with his left hind ankle.
At the 2019 Kentucky Derby, Saez rode Maximum Security around the line first, however stewards revoked the victory and dropped the colt to seventeenth for impeding the trails of a number of horses. Saez then was once suspended, accused of inflicting the interference.
Earlier this 12 months, he was once aboard Kentucky Derby champion Mage for a runner-up end on the Florida Derby. At Churchill Downs two weeks in the past, Saez’s horse, Tapit Trice, got here in 7th within the Derby.
Havnameltdown, owned by Michael Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman, had gained 4 of his six occupation begins previous to this race. He had maximum lately completed 2d within the Saudi Derby in February.
“We never had an issue with him,” Baffert said. “We are so careful with all these horses, and it still happens. It is something that is disheartening. I feel so bad for that horse. And I just hope that Luis is OK.”
___
AP National Writer Howard Fendrich and AP Sports Writer Noah Trister contributed.
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
post credit to Source link