And the Breeders' Cup scratches keep on coming, leaving the $7 million Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) with the smallest field in its 43-year history after Magnitude was declared out of Saturday's race at Keeneland with an issue to his left front leg.
Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen told drf.com that "a PET scan revealed some disruption in the suspensory fibers of his left fore. Nothing short of heartbroken because of how well we expected him to run.”
Magnitude, winner of the Dubai World Cup (G1) and the Stephen Foster Stales (G1), was 6-1 on the morning line, the fourth choice behind Forever Young (2-1), Sovereignty (5-2), Knightsbridge (9-2) and Golden Tempo (5-1).
The Breeders' Cup Classic, which usually determines the Horse of the Year, has never been run with less than a field of eight. Six times before, the Classic had eight-horse fields, twice at Keeneland (2015, 2020), which is hosting the Breeders' Cup for the fourth time.
Coolmore America, which owns the breeding rights to Magnitude, announced Thursday that the two-time Grade 1 winner has been retired and will stand at Ashford Stud.
For bettors, what does this mean? Well, Magnitude is a speed horse and was expected to break quickly from post 6 along with fellow speedsters Knightsbridge and Napoleon Solo.
With Magnitude not there to pose a threat to Knightsbridge, probably the fastest of the three -- the other top contenders – Forever Young and Sovereignty -- may have to stay closer to the front than originally planned since the early pace may not be as fast.
Splendora, trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, was declared out of the $2 million Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) Thursday afternoon after track vets determined the 5-year-old mare was not fully fit.
“We are all disappointed,” Baffert said. “She just wasn’t 100 percent, and we have to respect (the veterinarians). They told me they were not happy with her and wanted me to do some tests but it’s too late to do that. It would not be fair to her. We were really looking forward to running her.”
Splendora, last year's Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) winner, was the third choice on the morning-line at 9-2 behind Nitrogen (6-5) and Fully Subscribed (8-5).
The 1 1/8-mile Distaff field also stands at seven as Splendora's scratch comes a day after Scottish Lassie was scratched.
Other Breeders' Cup scratches on Thursday included: Serena's Ghost (Juvenile Fillies Turf), Nooni and Praying (Filly & Mare Sprint), Earth Song (Juvenile), Man's Best Friend (Juvenile Turf), Eccentric (Filly & Mare Turf).
Great Barrier Reef (Juvenile Turf) is expected to be scratched.
Richard Rosenblatt is an award-winning journalist and former Associated Press Horse Racing Editor. Currently, he serves as the news editor at US Racing, overseeing exclusive content from contributors worldwide.
