Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic field loses Zazu to shoulder inflammation

ARCADIA, Calif. -- Zazu, the winner of three graded stakes this year, will not start in the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic at Churchill Downs on Nov. 4 after inflammation was detected in a shoulder, trainer John Sadler said on Wednesday.

"We're going to bypass the Ladies' Classic," Sadler said. "She came out of her work a little off. We put her in the nuclear scan, and it revealed a little inflammation. The timing is lousy, but the prognosis for next year is 100 percent."

Nuclear scan tests are popular with trainers as a way to detect problems before more serious ailments develop.

Zazu was considered a top contender for the BC Ladies' Classic based on her victory in the Grade 1 Lady's Secret Stakes against older fillies and mares at Santa Anita on Oct. 1. Earlier this year, she won the Grade 1 Las Virgenes Stakes and Grade 2 Hollywood Oaks, both against 3-year-old fillies. In her lone career start at Churchill Downs, she was third in the Kentucky Oaks in May.

"It looked like she had a big shot," Sadler said. "We're disappointed."

Sadler said that Zazu will be given a 90-day break before resuming training. Owned by Jerry and Ann Moss, Zazu has won 4 of 11 starts and $682,985. The Mosses won the Lady's Secret for the fourth consecutive year earlier this month. Zenyatta, the 2010 Horse of the Year, won the race from 2008 to 2010.