Belmont: Big Drama to miss Vosburgh

ELMONT, N.Y. - Big Drama, the reigning sprint champion, will scratch out of Saturday's Grade 1, $350,000 Vosburgh Invitational at Belmont Park because of a temperature, trainer David Fawkes said late Friday afternoon.

Fawkes said that he will attempt to train Big Drama up to the Breeders' Cup Sprint at Churchill Downs on Nov. 5. Big Drama won the Sprint last year.

"This does not exclude me from the Breeders' Cup," Fawkes said. "Right now my standpoint is we train to the Breeders' Cup."

Big Drama was flown from Miami to New York on Thursday. He jogged on Belmont's main track Friday morning and the temperature was detected later Friday morning.

Fawkes said he didn't treat Big Drama, hoping the temperature would go down on its own, but it did not go down sufficiently to run. Fawkes said he did a blood test on Big Drama and everything else came back normal.

Big Drama had only run twice this year. He won the Mr. Prospector at Gulfstream in January and the Whippleton at Calder on Sept. 4.

Fawkes said that Big Drama would remain in New York for a couple of days before shipping back to Calder to train for the Breeders' Cup.

Fawkes still had Apriority entered in the Vosburgh.