While disappointing, keeping Forte out of the Preakness is the right thing to do
Leftovers from Kentucky Derby 149:
▪ It says here the state veterinarian did the right thing scratching Kentucky Derby favorite Forte the morning of the race. If there were any questions about Forte’s soundness, the colt should not have been allowed to run. And he wasn’t. Better to err on the side of extreme caution, even if it is the Kentucky Derby. Or especially if it is the Kentucky Derby.
And while disappointing, it is best that Forte not run in the Preakness, either. Under Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority rules, a horse that was scratched from a race for safety reasons will be placed on the vet list for 14 days, meaning he cannot compete in races during that time. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission placed Forte on the vet list on Sunday.
That had to be news to trainer Todd Pletcher, who had said Sunday morning that if the colt worked well this weekend in Louisville he would be shipped to Baltimore for the second jewel of the Triple Crown. Under HISA’s rules, which are followed by Kentucky and Maryland, that can’t happen. Nor should it.
If the trainer had scratched Forte, the colt would not have been placed on the vet’s list. That was not the case, however. Churchill Downs’ statement Saturday said Forte was scratched “by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission state veterinarian.” That’s why he was placed on the vet’s list on Sunday.
▪ I liked this tweet from California trainer Dan Blacker: “What we’ve learned in California is it’s possible to have racing with almost no catastrophic injuries. To achieve this, everyone’s routine has to change. Yes change not easy & additional veterinary scrutiny can be frustrating, but this is only way to ensure future for the sport.”
▪ After being postponed a couple of times, HISA’s Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program won’t start until May 22, two days after the Preakness. What happened at Churchill Downs last week — seven horses euthanized over a week and a half — shows the need for stricter and more uniform rules is stronger than ever.
▪ With a bit of an edge in his voice, Pletcher said Sunday of Mage’s Kentucky Derby win, “I guess on the bright side everybody who was critical of (Forte’s) Florida Derby can put that to bed.”
Forte rallied to beat Mage by a length in that Grade 1 race at Gulfstream on April 1. Forte’s detractors had pointed to his performance in that race as a reason why he would not win the Kentucky Derby, however.
▪ One thing we are learning from these Kentucky Derby races: Experience doesn’t matter as much as it once did. In 2018, Justify became the first Kentucky Derby winner that was unraced at 2 years old since Apollo in 1882. Five years later, we have another one in Mage, who did not run at 2.
Mage is also the fourth Kentucky Derby winner who had made just three previous starts. But three of those winners have come in the last 16 years — Big Brown in 2008, Justify in 2018 and Mage this year. Regret won the 1915 Kentucky Derby in her fourth career start.
Interestingly enough, Mage’s dam sire is Big Brown.
▪ Shout out to Robert Clay and Grandview Equine, Mage’s breeder, and Catesby Clay’s Runnymede Farm in Paris, where Mage was foaled, raised and initially sold. Robert Clay founded Three Chimneys Farm in 1972 before selling to Goncalo Torrealba in 2012. Runnymede was founded in 1867 by Colonel Ezekiel Clay.
▪ The horse to watch in the Preakness is Brad Cox’s First Mission, winner of the Grade 3 Lexington Stakes on April 15 at Keeneland. The son of 2007 Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense is on a two-race win streak and has been working well, Cox said the day after the Derby.
▪ One more thing: Kudos to trainer Larry Rivelli and runner-up Two Phil’s. I was among those who dismissed the colt’s 101 Beyer Speed Figure in winning the Jeff Ruby Steaks as a product of Turfway’s synthetic surface. I was wrong. Alas, Two Phil’s is skipping the Preakness.
This story was originally published May 9, 2023 at 12:36 PM.
