Over the first two days of racing at Churchill Downs this year, two horses from the barn of trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. suffered “sudden deaths,” meaning their cause was not immediately apparent and did not seem to be due to external trauma or musculoskeletal injury.
Parents Pride collapsed and died after failing to finish a race on April 29, and Chasing Artie suffered a similar fate after finishing last, beaten 28 ¾ lengths, in a May 2 turf sprint. Joseph trained the horses for Ken Ramsey.
The attention ahead of the track's biggest event prompted track management to release a statement, reassuring fans that it will “continue to press for answers.”
Joseph scratched his lone entrant at Churchill on Wednesday, May 3, and the Daily Racing Form reports that Joseph now plans to scratch all his other entrants at the Louisville, Ky. track this week, except for Kentucky Derby runner Lord Miles.
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission told DRF that it approved Joseph's request to scratch both of his entrants for Thursday and Friday's cards, Concrete Glory in the third race on Thursday, and Lady Emily Kathryn from the first race on Friday.
Joseph told DRF he also plans to scratch three of his seven entrants on Saturday, though he'll be leaving Kentucky Derby entrant Lord Miles in the entry box.
All the scratched horses were stabled with Joseph's string at Keeneland, as were the two horses to suffer sudden deaths, the trainer said. Joseph added that he ordered bloodwork on all his horses at Keeneland, but that preliminary results showed no abnormalities.
Read more at the Daily Racing Form.
The post After Two Sudden Deaths, Trainer Saffie Joseph Plans To Scratch Five Churchill Entrants; Lord Miles Remains In Kentucky Derby appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
