Nicanor scratched from today's Virginia Derby
DiscreetCat
Moderator
from Bloodhorse:
Nicanor, the full brother to Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner Barbaro, has has been scratched from the Virginia Derby (gr. IIT) on July 18 because of a leg injury.
"He did something. He hurt himself behind," trainer Michael Matz said July 17. "We're not exactly sure what it is."
He said the injury to the left hind leg apparently occurred during a gallop this week and became evident when the horse worked out Thursday in Maryland. "I took him out last night and he wasn't 100%," Matz said.
Matz was planning to bring Nicanor to the track Saturday morning for the $750,000 race for which he was the morning line favorite.
Barbaro won the Kentucky Derby in 2006, but shattered three bones in his right hind leg in his opening strides of the Preakness Stakes (gr. I). Barbaro then defied the odds by surviving eight months and enduring close to two dozen operations before he was euthanized because of laminitis. Like Barbaro, Nicanor is a son of Dynaformer out of La Ville Rouge.
Along with sentiment, Nicanor's results have also started to yield expectations. After failing to win in his first three starts on dirt, twice running second at Gulfstream Park, Nicanor moved to Delaware Park and won two consecutive starts on the grass.
The Virginia Derby is run on a turf course and is the second leg of the four-race Grand Slam of Grass. Colonial owner Jeff Jacobs is offering a $5 million bonus to any horse that wins the Turf Cup and Virginia Derby, both at Colonial Downs, as well as the Secretariat Stakes (gr. IT) at Arlington and the Breeders' Cup Turf (gr. IT) at Santa Anita.
The absence of Nicanor could be good news for Battle of Hastings, who won last month's Turf Cup, as well as Straight Story and Lime Rickey, who ran second and third.
Nicanor, the full brother to Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner Barbaro, has has been scratched from the Virginia Derby (gr. IIT) on July 18 because of a leg injury.
"He did something. He hurt himself behind," trainer Michael Matz said July 17. "We're not exactly sure what it is."
He said the injury to the left hind leg apparently occurred during a gallop this week and became evident when the horse worked out Thursday in Maryland. "I took him out last night and he wasn't 100%," Matz said.
Matz was planning to bring Nicanor to the track Saturday morning for the $750,000 race for which he was the morning line favorite.
Barbaro won the Kentucky Derby in 2006, but shattered three bones in his right hind leg in his opening strides of the Preakness Stakes (gr. I). Barbaro then defied the odds by surviving eight months and enduring close to two dozen operations before he was euthanized because of laminitis. Like Barbaro, Nicanor is a son of Dynaformer out of La Ville Rouge.
Along with sentiment, Nicanor's results have also started to yield expectations. After failing to win in his first three starts on dirt, twice running second at Gulfstream Park, Nicanor moved to Delaware Park and won two consecutive starts on the grass.
The Virginia Derby is run on a turf course and is the second leg of the four-race Grand Slam of Grass. Colonial owner Jeff Jacobs is offering a $5 million bonus to any horse that wins the Turf Cup and Virginia Derby, both at Colonial Downs, as well as the Secretariat Stakes (gr. IT) at Arlington and the Breeders' Cup Turf (gr. IT) at Santa Anita.
The absence of Nicanor could be good news for Battle of Hastings, who won last month's Turf Cup, as well as Straight Story and Lime Rickey, who ran second and third.
Comments
last nite i saw a race ......... i'm trying to remember now ,
ok anyways it was FUNNYSIDE Half sister an she won
i'll get more info. in a few .
but what a bummer with Nicanor i hope his Injury is not career ending
5mil for the sweep .. gotta be a great horse/filly to win that