Heir to the Stone out of tomorrow's Saratoga Special
DiscreetCat
Moderator
I had mentioned this horse in my watch list some time back. Disappointing to see him miss this race. He's perhaps the best 2yo i've seen so far this year.
from DRF:
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Heir to the Stone, who would have been among the favorites for Thursday's Saratoga Special, was not entered in the Grade 2 race after coming out of a weekend workout unsatisfactorily.
"He had a little crud in his lungs after his last breeze and a little bit of a shin, and I'm not looking to finish his year out in one race," trainer Rick Violette said. "They were just little things that were telling us to be patient and skip the race and do the right thing. If this was a race at the end of the year, we could go on with him, but there is a lot of racing left."
Heir to the Stone, a New York-bred son of Birdstone, won his debut on July 10 at Belmont Park by 5o3/4 lengths, running 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:02.98, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 90. Violette skipped the Sanford on July 24 because of its close proximity to Heir to the Stone's debut and had been focused on the Special.
Violette said he needed to see how Heir to the Stone trains in the coming days to determine when and where he would run next. If the shin does not become a major issue, there is a chance Heir to the Stone could make the Hopeful here on Sept. 1, though Violette is pointing his other top 2-year-old, Cribnote, to that race.
"We'll nominate both," Violette said. "Things happen."
from DRF:
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Heir to the Stone, who would have been among the favorites for Thursday's Saratoga Special, was not entered in the Grade 2 race after coming out of a weekend workout unsatisfactorily.
"He had a little crud in his lungs after his last breeze and a little bit of a shin, and I'm not looking to finish his year out in one race," trainer Rick Violette said. "They were just little things that were telling us to be patient and skip the race and do the right thing. If this was a race at the end of the year, we could go on with him, but there is a lot of racing left."
Heir to the Stone, a New York-bred son of Birdstone, won his debut on July 10 at Belmont Park by 5o3/4 lengths, running 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:02.98, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 90. Violette skipped the Sanford on July 24 because of its close proximity to Heir to the Stone's debut and had been focused on the Special.
Violette said he needed to see how Heir to the Stone trains in the coming days to determine when and where he would run next. If the shin does not become a major issue, there is a chance Heir to the Stone could make the Hopeful here on Sept. 1, though Violette is pointing his other top 2-year-old, Cribnote, to that race.
"We'll nominate both," Violette said. "Things happen."